Unexpected Love
by RecklessxDreamer
Summary: AkuRoku. Roxas's POV. Title explains all. Roxas bumps into Axel in the hall and as they pick up things on the floor Roxas begins to feel something for Axel...and he gets the idea that Axel feels it too. Rated T just incase...
1. The Redhead

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Author's Note: New story! Yay! It's a Kingdom Hearts fic and my first time ever writing  
AkuRoku. I loved writing this and I hope you enjoy!  
Pairing: AkuRoku  
Disclaimer: Nope, I don't own it.

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Unexpected Love

**Chapter 1**

I stared intensely at the clock hanging on the wall at the far side of the classroom willing it to tick faster, to move faster, so I could get out of this 'prison'. It was last period of the day and I am stuck sitting in World History class, the most boring class ever, trying to keep myself from falling asleep. When a teacher lectures about something no one cares about they are practically asking you to fall asleep in class. The only way I was ever to stay awake in this class was to find something remotely interesting and just stare at it. The clock was the best I could do. My eyes shut halfway as I tiredly stared at the slow moving hands of the clock. I closed my eyes for a couple seconds and heard a 'thunk'. I thought it had been me, figuring I had fallen asleep in the few seconds my eyes were shut, so I opened one eye and looked around hesitantly. I looked over at my cousin, Sora, who had his head resting on the desk. Phew, it hadn't been me. I instantly looked at the teacher, to see if she noticed the sound. She was staring at me, but also at Sora, telling me that, of course, she had. I always seemed to get blamed for things I didn't do.

Our teacher, Mrs. Harada, stared at us crossly until Sora finally picked up his head to stare back. We had what felt like a staring contest until she lost by blinking.

"Roxas, Sora." She said sternly, narrowing her eyes at us. I gulped and Sora looked at her dazed. He had never been one to cause trouble, but he couldn't help it when it came to Mrs. Harada's World History class. By now all of our classmates were staring at us, just wondering what was going to happen next.

"Yes, Mrs. Harada?" We replied simultaneously.

"I am extremely sorry if you don't find this class particularly interesting, but please do try to stay awake. And I have some advice for you: try getting more sleep at night before you come into my class the next day; maybe then you'll be able to concentrate on the History of the world you live in." She told us unhappily. Sora said nothing, not wanting to cause more trouble then he already had, and nodded his head slowly. I followed his lead and gave her a quick nod too. She gave us another cross look before returning to her discussion. I sighed and went back to staring at the clock while Sora tiredly rested his chin on the desk in front of him.

15 minutes later, at 2:30, the bell rang signaling to us it was time to leave. Sora stood up quickly, gathered his things, and ran out the door, leaving me behind. I shoved as many books as I could into my backpack and then carried what I couldn't fit in my arms. Everyone by now was gone except of course Mrs. Harada who was giving me a wicked look as I came towards the front of the room. Passing by her desk I picked up my pace and practically sprinted out the door. I slowed down once I got a few feet away from her classroom and began walking down the hall lazily to my locker.

As I was doing so I began to space off, thinking about the events of the day. Being the oblivious person I am I obviously was not paying any attention to where I was going and ended up evidently slamming right into someone's body. I fell backwards on to my butt and my books spewed everywhere. I frowned, got to my knees and started picking up my books. Angrily I shoved them into my backpack, even though it was pretty much full. Wondering if this person who I had bumped into was going to help me or just watch me I picked up another book. To my surprise, my road block knelt down and grabbed a book that was lying next to him.

"Sorry 'bout that. I wasn't really paying attention to where I was walking." A male voice spoke up, sounding sincerely sorry. He extended his arm with the book to me. I looked up quickly to see a guy, upperclassman I think, junior or senior if I had to guess, with long, spiky, red hair, bright green eyes, and identical teardrop-like tattoos under each eye, give me a small grin. I looked back down immediately at my backpack and grabbed the book from him as I grunted. He picked up another book and held it out for me to take. I did, grunting again, hoping he'd get the message to just leave me alone. I didn't really want his help anymore. To my dismay he completely ignored me and started picking up some pencils that had fallen out of my backpack.

"Look," I began and looked up to tell him that his services weren't needed anymore to surprisingly find two bright green eyes staring back at me, waiting for me to continue. Before I had only taken a quick glance at him, but now as our eyes locked on each other I could not tear myself away. His eyes were…gorgeous. They were captivating and mine were seemingly glue to his so even if I tried to look away I don't think I could. I looked around at the rest of his face without removing my eyes from his. His face was also pretty gorgeous…wait what the hell am I saying?? That's something someone who's had a longtime crush on the guy would say. And a crush on him is something I don't have. Besides, I'm not gay. At least I don't think I am, but I am pretty sure I'm not. I think about things before I let my mind blurt stuff like that. But as I stared into this upperclassman's eyes I feel a warm and tingly sensation running through my whole body. I gave a little shiver. My awkward thoughts clouded my brain and it somehow affected my vision so I didn't see him raise an eyebrow. He finally spoke up.

"Uh, are you okay…uh," He paused and looked down at one of my pencils, which immediately broke our staring contest, to read the name on it. "Uh...Roxas?" I shook my head and looked at him confused.

"Huh?" Brilliant answer Roxas, simply brilliant.

"Your face. It's all red. I was wondering if you were okay." The red haired upperclassman asked. I brought a hand up to my cheek and felt it penetrating heat. Crap. Why am I blushing?! Not good! Not good! It couldn't be possible that I do have a crush on this guy I just met, could it? If I do then it's definitely not good. I am pretty sure he doesn't feel anything for me, especially since we just met...What is wrong with me?! I tried to ignore my heated face and began once more to pick up the last few things on the ground. He handed me the pencils that he was holding. I took them hurriedly and clumsily put them in my backpack. The upperclassman stood up and held out a hand to help me up as well. I ignored the hand and stood up myself. I slung my backpack over my shoulders and brushed myself off. The red-haired male dropped his hand to his side. I looked up at him ready to say 'thank you' to see a little smirk stretched across his angular face.

"What?!" I asked annoyed, not sure what exactly I did to deserve that look. He gave a small laugh.

"I've never seen a freshman go from being so flustered to so annoyed as quickly as you just did." He sounded amused by this. I gave him a tiny glare. Then I thought I heard him mumble "cute" under his breath taking me aback by this. He grinned at me. "Well I'll be seeing you. Oh and try not to bump into any other upperclassmen, okay?" And with that he turned on his heel and walked down the hall. I stood there, speechless, not entirely sure what he meant by that statement, but it caused a blush to creep up on my face again.

Suddenly I felt a hand on my shoulder and it made me jump.

"Roxas, man, calm down. It's only me." My cousin Sora said. I took a deep breath.

"Geez, are you okay Roxas?" Kairi, Sora's girlfriend, asked. Riku stood next to Sora with a raised eyebrow. "You're all red." I shook my head and took a glance behind me to see the red-haired student leaning against a locker with some of his friends.

"Roxas? What's wrong with you?" Sora asked curiously. I turned my head back around to face them and put a grin on my face.

"Nothing. I am perfectly fine." I replied. The three of them didn't look like they believed me, but I knew they dropped it for the moment when Riku said, "Alright, let's just go." When everyone nodded and began walking out of the school I knew I was in the clear. They most likely wouldn't be questioning me about my actions again today.

I started thinking about the upperclassman's brilliant green eyes looking expectantly at me as we walked home. I smiled pleasantly. I still didn't know if I had a crush on him or not…But the way he said my name just made me grin. "Roxas…Roxas…Roxas…Roxas? **ROXAS!" **I shook my head again coming out of my thoughts to see Sora, Kairi, and Riku looking at me weirdly, again.

"Roxas? Are you positive you're okay? You were spacing off this whole time." Kairi said. I nodded.

"Yeah I'm perfectly fine. I'm great actually." I replied cheerfully.

"Okay…" Sora said, unsure still. We arrived at my house a few seconds later and I waved goodbye to my cousin and co. and I walked into my house. I immediately got started on my homework, but soon again I was thinking about the upperclassman. As I did so something suddenly struck me. I didn't even know his name. So now I can't even address him when I see him in the halls.

I slammed my head wearily against the table as I cursed at my horrible misfortune.

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**Author's Note: There you have it! Hope you enjoyed reading it!  
Please review! Thanks :D**


	2. The Beach and Axel's Number 1 Fan Boy

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Author's Note: Here's the second chapter! Sorry it's late, but ideas weren't coming to me so I  
had to put it off. But it's finally up so enjoy!  
Pairing: AkuRoku  
Disclaimer: Do I even have to say it?

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Chapter 2.

I closed my eyes as I kept my head on the table. _'I cannot believe I didn't ask him for his name. How stupid can I be? …Well I never was the sharpest knife in the drawer,'_ I sighed. _'I guess it doesn't really matter…I doubt I'll see him again. And if I do then he probably won't even remember me.'_ I picked up my pen, shoving the thoughts of the green-eyed upperclassman to the back of my head so I could concentrate on starting my homework again.

When I went to bed at around 10:00 I fell asleep almost instantly, but almost at once I began to have dreams, some pleasant, but others turned into nightmares. I began to realize something, in my unconscious state, as I went through a cycle of dreams and nightmares; they all revolved around him, the tomato-red haired upperclassman with piercing green eyes. Wow, first thoughts of him were clogging up my mind when I was awake and now this guy is invading my dreams while I slept. God, this is too weird. I'm already dreaming about the guy. This can't be right. I'm taking this way too far.

I forced myself awake right before the part in my nightmare where I told the guy I liked him and everyone started laughing and pointing at me. I sighed as I sat up straight in bed.

_'Maybe if I took a walk to the beach it'll clear my mind of him. It's probably this stuffy room that is causing me to have these weird dreams…'_ I reasoned in my head. I swung my feet off my bed and onto the floor. I stood up and walked over to my closet where I left my sneakers and put them on. I grabbed my sweatshirt off the back of a chair and slipped it on. I made my way over to my bedroom door, passing a pair of bunny slippers that belonged to my cousin- no not Sora. I walked out of my room quietly and crept my way down the stairs and to the front door. I unlocked the door and opened it as quietly as I could and walked out, making sure I closed it behind me.

I made my way down the walkway and faced the direction of the ocean. It was still night so the moon was high in the sky and glowing brightly. It was a full moon tonight. The moon lit up the side walk making it easier for me to see where I was walking. As I made my way down the sidewalk, I looked ahead of me and saw the reflection of the moon on the ocean. (My house resided on a hill so it made that view very easy to see.) It looks very nice tonight. I sighed and walked down the street towards the beach. I shivered as a slight autumn breeze blew through the air. Thank god I grabbed my sweatshirt before I left.

I arrived at the beach fairly quickly, but when I started over to my usual spot I realized someone was already there. I stopped short and stared at the figure sitting a few feet in front of me. Squinting my eyes, I tried to make out who the person was. In the moonlight I saw spiky hair moving slightly in breeze. At first I thought it was Sora, but when I looked closer I could tell that this person's hair was not brown, but red. In an instant my eyes widened and my feet moved my body backwards a few steps. It was the red-haired upperclassman from school…

It seemed to me that this guy was following me everywhere. Or I was following him…Either way I couldn't seem to escape his presence. I took another quiet step backwards, keeping my eyes on the back of the students head. Nervous butterflies fluttered around in my stomach as I held my breath; careful not to make any noise in fear that he would catch me.

I looked around for cover and spotted a few large rocks resting on the beach. I hid myself behind them and peered through a little slit between two rocks at the upperclassman, who was watching the ocean intently. Another horde of butterflies managed their way into my stomach as I watched the peacefully looking male, making it hard to shake the guilty and nervous feeling I had about spying on him. I leaned my head against the smooth rock as I watched him and felt my eyes close, feeling myself drift off to sleep.

What only seemed like seconds later I was jolted awake by a smooth voice saying, "Well, well, well, who do we have here?"

I blinked my eyes open immediately and looked up to see the bright-green eyed red-head leaning over me, with a curious look on his face. A blush colored my cheeks as heat rose from my face. The red-haired male smirked at me, which surprised me seeing as how I thought he would be livid after finding me spying on him. I silently wished he did not recognize me, but of course, I had no such luck when I realized he was studying my face carefully. I could see a light bulb go off above his head when he figured out who I was.

"Hey! Aren't you the kid I knocked over this afternoon in the hall?" He asked, squinting at me. I didn't answer him. He stared at me even closer when I didn't reply. "Yeah you are!" He exclaimed, confirming his suspicion. The blush returned to my face, even though I had just gotten it to go away.

"What are you doing here, uh, spying on me?" He asked. Then a sly smile appeared on his face. "Can't get enough of me now, huh?" Humor appeared in his voice.

"Clever," I replied back, my own tone thick with sarcasm. The male's eyes widened, obviously surprised by my tone of voice.

"I was just kidding." He told me then added, "Geez, the freshman this year are so uptight. No sense of humor what so ever. Last year's class was great at taking jokes." I rolled my eyes at him and decided in my head that it was time to get up and go home. My leg had finally fallen asleep, and it was going to take a few minutes to get feeling back into it, and plus, this guy's comments were starting to get on my nerves.

I stood up slowly, supporting myself on the rock beside me, and immediately the pins-and-needles sensation shot through my sleeping leg.

"CRAP! Ow, ow, ow, ow!" I howled, my leg buckling from the pain, almost causing me to fall down...the red-haired male beside me was able to grab my arm just as I was going down.

"Whoa, you okay?" He asked, concerned. I nodded and motioned for him to let go of me. The only way to get rid of the pins and needles in my leg was to jump and stomp around to get its feeling back. He hesitantly obeyed and let go of me, but keeping his hand by my arm incase I needed support. As soon as he let go I began jumping up and down on my foot, and stomping it on the ground as hard as I could. As I did this I caught the red-head's facial expression in the moonlight to see that it was one of utter amusement.

After a minute or so of stomping around my leg finally regained all of its feeling and I was able to stop flailing around like a maniac.

I brushed myself off of the sand right after my little episode and kept myself from looking at the high school student in front of me. I felt the male's eyes still on me so I looked up, unwillingly of course.

"Are you okay now?" He asked an amused smile still playing on his face.

"Yeah, fine. Thanks. I just get really bad pins-and-needles when I am still for a long time," I explained. A long silence followed my explanation until I filled it in by sighing. "Well, I'm going to head home now. So seeya, I guess." I turned around abruptly and started walking away.

"Roxas, wait!" The male called, causing my feet to stop moving on their own. My stomach fluttered with those annoying butterflies again, but this time not because I was nervous or embarrassed, just because he had called my name. Whenever he talked to me the butterflies seemed to appear magically, but why it was only when he was around? I really don't know. It surprised me that he actually remembered my name, too. I turned around almost unwillingly and waited for him to catch up.

When he did he said, "Let me walk you home." I raised an eyebrow at him and searched his face for any evidence of him playing a joke on me. I found nothing of the sort though. His face looked somewhat serious.

"No it's okay. I'll be fine on my own. You don't have to do that," I refused immediately. He shook his head.

"I know I don't have to, but I want to. Besides I don't want my one and only little fan boy to get hit by a car or anything terrible like that," he grinned mischievously at me, his cat-like green eyes shining. I scowled back at him, turned, and began to walk away again. He ran after me once he realized what I was doing. "Joke Roxas, just a joke." I rolled my eyes as I kept my gaze on the pavement in front of me.

"Har har. Funny, real funny," I replied dryly.

"I thought so…" He chucked to himself. Once his laughter stopped, silence fell between us again as we walked up the street.

It was silent for a very long time and I began to forget all about the red-head next to me, but, of course, he had to ruin that by opening his mouth.

"By the way, my name's Axel. Got it memorized?" I looked at him and nodded slowly. "I just realized I knew your name but you had no clue what mine was," the red haired upperclassman continued to me. "I didn't want you to keep thinking I was some random creep from school walking you home. Now you can refer to me as Axel, Destiny High's creep," Axel snickered. I chuckled too and shook my head. My mind wandered away from me as silence filled the air once again, as I found it did often, and I began thinking about his name. 'Axel….' It actually fit him perfectly. It was unique and odd, like he was, but also just plain random.

"It's nice to finally know your name…" I replied back. Another breeze blew through the air and caused a violent shiver to shake my body. Axel looked at me out of the corner of his eye.

"You know it's fall right?" He asked.

"Yeah, you're point?" I replied.

"Well…it gets cold in the fall so you know what that means, right?" He asked. I looked at him, not really getting where he was going with this.

"Not really," I answer, confused. Axel sighed. It wasn't an impatient sigh; it was more of a "Wow Roxas, you are really being stupid" sigh. I get those sighs from Riku all the time so it was a familiar sound.

"It means that you should start wearing warmer clothing out so you don't get cold," Axel replied. I rolled my eyes.

"What are you now? My mother?" I said.

"I could be if you wanted me to, but wouldn't that be a little weird?" Axel asked, shrugging as if he had said this to someone before. I sighed and shook my head. Axel grinned at me and chuckled. The butterflies returned as he laughed at the not so funny response. I couldn't help but smile, though, and laugh along with him. Laughter was contagious after all, and for some reason, his especially was.

"Anyways, in all seriousness, you should were a coat or something or you'll freeze your ass off," Axel said with a serious face. "Which would really be a shame since your ass is really cute." A smirk formed on his face and a deep blush covered mine. 'What the hell!?' Then before I knew it my hand was in a fist and came in contact with his face. Immediately after the hit Axel's hand was on his cheek where I had punched him. And in all honesty, I didn't feel bad about it at all.

"Why the hell did you say that?!" I shouted at him stopping in my tracks. And to my surprise he began to laugh his own ass off. I stared at him as he clutched his stomach in agony from laughing so hard. I waited as patiently as I could until he calmed down and grinned broadly. I, for once, didn't return his grin with my own grin, but instead I returned it with a livid glare.

"That was the best reaction EVER!" He howled. I widened my eyes in shock. "I'm sorry Roxas, but I had to! You walked right into that!" I narrowed my eyes, gave an annoyed sigh, and began walking away from Axel. When I was a few feet away I heard another set of footsteps walking quickly after me. I knew at once who it was and sped up.

"Oh come on Roxy! You really need to learn to loosen up and take a joke!" Axel yelled. I stopped abruptly, turned on my heel, and pointed my finger in his face when he slowed down in front of me.

"Don't call me that! And never, ever say something to me like that again," I said through clenched teeth. "It's just too weird." Axel nodded and smiled at me.

"Okay Roxas, I won't weird you out again…well I'll try not too. But don't get mad if I slip 'cause it's just my nature. I am sorry though, that I freaked you out," Axel apologized sincerely. I sighed and felt my face soften.

"Good. Thank you," I replied appreciating his unexpected understanding. He nodded and we began walking again. Before even a minute of silence went by Axel started chuckling again. I looked at him curiously.

"I was just thinking about you punching me in the face. You know, you have a really good arm," he told me.

"Oh…" I answered. "Thanks…I think."

"I have a feeling I will have a bruise on my cheek tomorrow," he said.

"Sorry about that…" I apologized.

"Nah, don't be. I deserved it anyways," He grinned.

"Yeah, yeah you did," I agreed. He laughed and shook his head and then quickly thought of something else to say.

"Geez, where is your house anyways? It feels like we've been walking for hours!" Axel said quickly changing the subject.

"Uh, it's like two houses away," I said. He nodded and we picked up the pace until we reached my house.

"Here we are!" Axel said.

"Yeah… Uh, well thanks, for bring me home, though you really didn't need to," I said to him.

"No problem Roxas," Axel said waving my thanks away with a flick of his wrist.

"Well bye Axel. See you at school, I suppose," I waved and turned to walk up the walkway. Half way there I looked back to see him waving at me. I waved back and quickened my pace to get up to my house faster. I opened my door slowly and slipped into my still house and closed the door behind me with out looking back outside, knowing that the red head was still there waiting till I was in my house "safely". I shook my head at the thought of him waiting for me to enter my house before he left and made my way back up to my room.

Entering my room I kicked off my shoes and walked over to my bed. I flopped onto it and sighed tiredly. I looked over at my clock and groaned. Only a few hours left to sleep. That's what I get for getting up in the middle of the night and spending half of it with that red haired upperclassman. I rubbed my eyes and rolled over. I stuffed my head into my pillow and closed my eyes. Surprisingly enough sleep overcame me just as I wanted and I was able to sleep peacefully for the last few hours of the night.

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**Author's Note: So did you like it? I hope so!  
Please review!**


	3. New Friends

_OhEMGEE! What could this be? Is it the third chapter of Unexpected Love?? I think it is!! Yaay! I know, I know it's been awhile! And I'm sorry for the long wait. I feel terrible about! Forgive me! Blame writer's block! -shudder- The sound of those two words together make me cringe!_

_Hahaha, well enough of the dramatics and on with the show--erm story! I think you've waited long enough (and very patiently might I add)_

_Oh and I must add one thing: I don't think this is my greatest work, after all I am getting over writer's block, but I may be wrong. You can be the just of that! Anyways, happy reading!_

_Disclaimer: -owns nothing sadly-_

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**Chapter 3**

My morning wasn't exactly the best I've ever had. My mother's high shrill voice woke me up at 6:00 on the dot, only allowing me about 4 hours sleep. So because of the lack of sleep it was hard to get myself moving. After getting yelled and nagged at by my mother numerous times, I was finally got all my chores done and got everything ready for school. By then it was 7:15 and Sora was ringing the doorbell to my house. I dashed out the door so he, Riku, Kairi, and I could walk to school together.

Unfortunately the first half of my school day wasn't much better then my morning. I fell asleep in most of my classes. I was still in a daze by the time fourth period had ended and also equipped with a detention. Yeah that's right, I fell asleep in the middle of my biology class and was caught. Though at the moment I am too tired to care.

I made my way down the hall and to my locker where I began putting away books and taking others out for my classes after lunch. I was unaware of my surroundings, like usual, and so I didn't even notice there was someone next to me until I felt a hard prod in my shoulder. I look to the left of me to see Axel, leaning casually on locker next to mine, with a red eyebrow raised.

"Geez Roxy, you look like hell!" Axel stated adding a low whistle when he saw my tired face.

"Aw, gee thanks Axel!" I said with sarcasm in my voice. He chuckled.

"Well at least you are still able to make those sarcastic remarks I'm coming to love so dearly," Axel smiled.

"I'm never too tired for sarcasm," I replied with my own less-tired smile. I surprised myself with the new energy that started flowing through my body. I looked at Axel, who seemed like huge ball of energy, and wondered if it was radiating off of him and into me. I mentally shrugged it off, not caring where the energy was coming from, just happy to finally have some. Instead of pondering on that last thought, I locked up my locker and began walking away from it and Axel. I had a weird feeling he would follow me anyways. My weird feeling turned out to be right and a few seconds later Axel fell in step with me as I walked down the hall.

"So...where are you going?" Axel asked, trying to make conversation.

"Isn't it a little weird for an upperclassman to be 'hanging' out with a freshman? Don't you have a reputation to uphold?" I asked, ignoring his question. Axel shrugged.

"Not really..." He replied.

"Oh...okay then."

"Are you going to answer my question?" He asked.

"And what was that?" I replied, truly not remembering what he had said. He sighed.

"Where are you going?"

"Lunch." I replied to him.

"Best class ever!" He exclaimed.

"You consider it a class?" I laughed.

"Of course! It's the best class of them all!" I laughed again.

"So very right you are," I grinned deciding to agree with him. Axel's cat-like green eyes stared at me, wide awake, unlike mine had been before he had shown up. His gaze sent odd shivers up my spine. "Where are you going?"

"I have no clue actually." He laughed. I chuckled.

"I see," I replied. "You should probably figure that out soon. He nodded. He looked around the hall then grabbed a tall, thin, blond's arm and pulled him over to us. The blond stumbled a little as Axel let go of his arm and he tried to fall in step with us.

"Hey Axel, what's up?" He asked.

"Not much, just trying to remember whose class I am supposed to be going to," Axel replied.

"Wow Axel! The year is almost half-over and you still don't know what classes you have when?" The taller blond asked.

"Nope."

"Well it's a good thing I am in your next..." that's when the blond noticed me. "Hey Axel? Who's the small guy?"

"The 'small guy' is Roxas," Axel explained, using air-quotations as he said "small guy".

"Ah," The blond nodded. "How ya doing Roxas? My name's Demyx."

"It's nice to meet you, Demyx. I'm fine, and how are you?" I replied with great manners my mother would have been proud of.

"Oh Roxy! You don't have to be so formal...it's just Dem," Axel exclaimed using that rotten nickname. I sighed, even though I told him not to call me I wasn't surprised that he didn't listen to my request.

"Yeah, a simple 'how do ya do?' would have been fine," Demyx added with a grin as we came to a stop in front of the cafeteria doors. I turned to them both before I entered the lunch room.

"That's for walking me to lunch, I guess."

"No problem! Glad to do it!" Axel replied. _'Of course you are." _Demyx prodded Axel's shoulder a few times until the red head turned and gave the blond his attention.

"Axel, we might want to go now. Don't want to get in trouble again." Demyx said. Axel sighed.

"Yeah, I suppose." Axel turned back to me. "Well see you later Roxas!" And the two upperclassmen began walking away.

Demyx looked back at me and yelled, "Bye bye Roxas!" and waved. I waved back to him and watched them turn the corner before entering the cafeteria.

Right when I walked through the double doors I was greeted by a blonde girl, whose face was familiar but name escaped me. I knew she was associated with Kairi somehow and that was pretty much it. She seemed happy to see me though.

"Hello Roxas," The girl greeted me with a small smile. _'Now I feel bad...she knows my name and I haven't a clue what her's is.'_

"Uh...hi...erm..." I paused, hoping she would fill in the missing blank or a name would come to me.

"Naminé," She told me. _'Oh that's right! Naminé's her name. I definitely won't remember that tomorrow.'_

"Yeah, Naminé," I nodded. "What's up?"

"Kairi asked me to come over and lead you to our table when I saw you. She or Sora would have done it, but they became too engrossed in a conversation with Riku, so I was asked to do it," The bleach-blonde girl explained.

"You didn't have to do that," I told her. "I could have found the table fine myself."

"Not from what Riku told me," Naminé contradicted gently.

"And what did Riku tell you exactly?" I asked suspiciously, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, it's just that he said you have gotten lost before trying to find where they were sitting," She giggled slightly at this. I sighed, defeated. I couldn't really argue with this. It was all true. Though it's not entirely my fault! Sure I have a bad sense of direction, but Sora, Kairi, and Riku don't help the matter when they switch tables every day.

"Lead me to them, then," Naminé nodded and grabbed my wrist lightly. The girl tugged me along, weaving through the maze of tables until we reached the one where my cousin and his two friends resided. Naminé had been right; the three best friends were deeply absorbed in a conversation. We caught the tail end of the chat they were having.

"...And did you see how weird he was acting yesterday afternoon? He's never like that," Kairi said.

"Yeah but Kairi he's always quiet. It's just the way he is," Sora replied.

"I suppose that's true..." Kairi trailed off. That's when Naminé took the chance to make our arrival known by clearing her throat. Kairi, Sora, and Riku looked up at us.

"I found Roxas!" Naminé beamed. Sora grinned.

"Hey Roxas! You didn't get lost this time?" Riku smirked.

"No, I didn't, thanks to Naminé," I said rolling my eyes at Riku's attempt to poke fun at me. Sora then piped.

"Are you guys going to sit down or what?" He wondered. I nodded and Naminé and I took our seats: I sat in the middle of Sora and Kairi while Naminé sat on the other side of Kairi next to Riku. I took out my lunch and started eating immediately. Naminé though stared at Kairi and Sora scrutinizingly. Kairi must have felt eyes on her because she looked over at Naminé.

"What's wrong Nam?" The auburn haired girl asked.

"What were you guys talking about?" The blonde asked curiously. Funny, Naminé didn't strike me as the nosey type. Kairi took a quick glance at Sora then planted her blue eyes back on Naminé.

"Oh, nothing of any importance," Kairi replied after a long pause.

"Oh..." Naminé said, disappointment obvious in her voice, though the look on her face told that she didn't believe Kairi at all. We ate in silence after that for the rest of lunch, except for the times Sora attempted to strike up a conversation.

Soon lunch was over and we were all walking to our next class. Sora and I left Riku, Naminé, and Kairi and started down a hallway to History. Fun.

Sora once again attempted to make conversation.

"So, uh Roxas...what was with you yesterday?" I looked at my brunette cousin curiously.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"Well, uhm, you were very jumpy and you didn't seem totally with us on the walk home. Kairi and I were kind of worried something was wrong," He explained. Oh, so that's what he means. I sighed.

"Nothing was wrong so you don't have to worry any longer. I was just having an off day I guess..." I told him a reasonable excuse for my weird behavior. He seemed to buy it too because after a shrug he dropped the subject. I sighed again as we walked into History class and sat down at our regular seats.

* * *

Mrs. Harada wasted no time in beginning the lesson once everyone was seated. As she talked I folded my arms on my desk and rested my head on them. Closing my eyes I listened to Mrs. Harada's monotone voice until I drifted off into a light sleep.

A few minutes later I was jolted awake when something hit my head. I lifted my head and looked around dazed. I looked over at Sora and he was staring at me.

"What?" I whispered.

"What is wrong with you today?" He mouthed back. I shrugged.

"Tired?" I offered. He gave me a look of disbelief. Oh well. It wasn't my problem that he didn't believe me. I looked away from him and stared at the front board for the rest of the class.

The rest of the day went by fairly quickly and I was relieved to finally be able to go home. I planned on sleeping right when I got home to catch up on the "z's" I lost from going out to the beach. I reached my locker and opened it up. I filled my backpack with the books I needed for homework and put away the books I didn't need. My biology book was the last thing I needed from my locker. When I took it out a pink piece of paper slid out of it. I picked it up and turned it over. Crap. It was my detention slip. Forgot about that...I sighed and shoved my Biology book into my backpack and slammed shut my locker. I leaned against my closed locker and stared at the pink paper in my hand. I slammed my head against the metal making a loud banging sound. People looked in my direction with questioning looks on their faces, but I ignored them.

"Hey Roxas! Ready to go home?" I looked over to the right of me and saw Sora grinning at me with Riku, Kairi, and Naminé at his sides.

"Sorry you guys. I won't be walking home with you today," I replied.

"Why?" Sora asked. I waved the pink slip in front of their faces. Sora's eyes followed it. "Is that a detention slip?"

"Yeah..." I sighed. Riku snickered and I shot him a glare.

"Well that stinks, Roxas," Kairi said.

"Yeah, I'll deal." I shrugged.

"Good luck with that Roxas," Sora grinned. I nodded. "I guess we'll go then..." Riku, Kairi, and Naminé nodded.

"Bye Roxas. See you tomorrow." The three of them said; Riku, of course, stayed silent because he didn't like me and could care less if he saw me tomorrow.

"Okay," I replied. Sora, Riku, Naminé, and Kairi turned and walked down the hall, leaving me in the hallway to figure out where the detention room was. I walked down a few hallways until I found a door with a sign hanging on it that said "Detention".

Taking a deep breath I grasped the doorknob and opened the door slowly. I walked in hesitantly and all the kids in the room stared at me. The teacher in the room didn't even look up at me. He just said, "Sit."

I scanned the room for a free seat. As I did, my eyes caught sight of two familiar faces. A certain red-head and his tall, blond friend. They were both grinning at me and Demyx was waving me over. Axel pointed to a free seat beside him. I internally groaned as I made my way over to the seat next to Axel.

I placed my backpack on the floor and sat down at the desk. I took out a notebook and pen to make it look like I was doing something, but then looked over at the two upperclassmen next too me. They had the goofiest grins on their faces that I've ever seen.

"What?" I whispered.

"Nothing." Axel said back, in a whisper louder then mine. Demyx leaned over his desk and looked around Axel at me and whispered just ask loudly as Axel had, "Hi Roxas!"

"Hi Demyx..." I replied back softly and motioned with my hand to bring down the volume of his whispering, but he ignored it- not surprising.

"Roxas, what are you in here for?" Demyx asked.

"I fell asleep in History," I answered, shooting the red head next to me a look as if to say it was his entire fault that I got caught. Axel laughed when he caught sight of my face.

"Hey! Don't blame me! I wasn't the one who made you get up in the middle of the night and take a walk down to the beach. It was your own fault you came to school tired, let yourself sleep, and got caught doing it too. That was all you Roxy!" Axel grinned triumphantly. I rolled my eyes.

"Why are you guys here?" I asked, quickly taking the subject off of me.

"For detention," Demyx answered slowly, as if I already didn't know that. _'No shit.'_

"_No_," I sighed slowly then restated my question, "I mean what did you two do to get detention in the first place?"

"Oooh." Demyx said understanding what I was asking now, "We were late for class." He grinned sheepishly.

"Late for the class you were heading to after you walked me to lunch?" I questioned.

"Yeah. Axel here decided to take his sweet time getting to a class we were already kind of late for, and that resulted in getting us both a detention when we finally stepped into the classroom." Demyx explained, side-glancing at the red head who was doodling on a piece of paper in front of him.

At the front of the classroom, the detention proctor finally looked up, cleared his throat and glared at Axel, Demyx, and me to tell us to shut up at once. But of course, Axel and Demyx completely ignored him. I, though, glanced nervously at the proctor every so often while the two upperclassmen chatted.

"You cannot blame me for all of that Dem. Sure I may have been walking very slowly, but you also _had_ to stop and talk to Zexion, who was also on his way to class. You're probably the reason he's here too." Axel countered. Axel leaned forward on his desk and poked the person with blue-gray hair in front of him. "Isn't that right Zexion? Dem made you late because he stopped to chat with you when you were rushing off to class?" Said person didn't look up from his book, so to me he seemed to be ignoring Axel, but then after a few seconds he turned his head slightly to the right and replied, "Yes. It was partly his fault." He paused. A pout formed on Demyx's face and Axel grinned at him obviously feeling very smug right now but then Zexion gave a small sigh and continued.

"But it was also partially my fault because I forgot my textbook and had to run back to my locker to get it; thus making me late for class." The pout on Demyx's face was less prominent now after finding out it wasn't entirely his fault Zexion got a detention. The smug look on Axel's face was completely gone now. He more looked...defeated.

The proctor looked up again and cleared his throat even louder then before causing, Axel, Demyx, Zexion, and me to look straight at him.

"Quiet." He growled. All four of us nodded our heads vigorously until he looked back down at his desk. When he did, Zexion went back to reading instantly. Axel looked over at Demyx, who stuck his tongue out childishly in triumph, and of course Axel, being the bigger person he is stuck his tongue out right back at his friend. I rolled my eyes, wondering how I got myself tangled up with such idiots and picked up my pen to start writing- after all it was what I was best at, so why not take the hour I was in here to start something new?

Well truth be told, that something new didn't really get started. I got about a paragraph and a half down before I was interrupted.

"Hey Roxy, what'cha writing?" Axel whisper-asked me.

"Nothing of any importance," I replied, shifted my arm a little on the paper so it would cover up the few sentences. What? I was very private about what I wrote. Axel, and now Demyx, eyed me suspiciously. "Really; it's nothing! I'm just trying to keep my mind off the fact that I have detention." _'Along with keeping it off the subject of those mesmerizing green eyes of yo-. Roxas quit it! Just go back to writing, okay? Go back to doing one of the two things that just might keep you sane.' _I sighed and looked back down at my notebook again, only to find that it was gone. Where the hell did it go? I searched around me frantically for it until I spotted the red notebook in the red head's grasp. I paled. I never, I repeat** never** allow anyone, under any circumstances, to read what I write until the writings are finished and edited. But how the hell did he get it from under my arm's protection without my noticing?

I know what you are thinking. You're thinking about how it's only a little paragraph and a half long and that I shouldn't be upset, but boy was I freaking out in my mind. My brain couldn't take this random change that messed up the ritual I went through every time I wrote something.

"Give. It. Back." I hissed through clenched teeth, but the red head ignored my request. Should have seen that coming. Instead he passed the notebook over to Demyx. Axel looked at me, grinning.

"Roxy, you said it was nothing, so I don't understand why you are getting so upset. You shouldn't mind if we read your..._nothing_." Axel told me. My blood began to boil and I was getting angry very fast. It actually scared me since my body has never reacted like this before; probably because everyone obeyed my requests to not touch my notebooks until I give them permission.

"Well, I do mind _Axey_," I seethed. My mind and body was freaking out and I realized that if I didn't get the notebook back my body might resort to violence. Axel smirked at my tone dripping with annoyance.

"Roxas, this is going to be good." Demyx grinned good-naturedly at me. My mind blocked out the compliment so it was like he never said anything. My hands clenched tightly into fists by my sides, my knuckles turning white.

_'They are torturing me on purpose,' _I figured. Well at least Axel was. I could tell by his face that he was enjoying my reaction. Sick bastard.

"Zexion, you should read this!" Demyx whispered, handing the red notebook to the blue-gray haired upperclassman across from him. Zexion didn't take it from him though. He kept his eyes on his book. "Zexy, take it!" Demyx poked him with the corner of the notebook. Zexion didn't seem to notice the prod.

"Demyx, Axel; cut it out. Give the kid his notebook back before he kills you. And stop annoying him, you idiots." Zexion finally scolded both of them in a stern voice. Axel and Demyx looked at each other and sighed.

"Geez Zexy, you're no fun." Axel told him as Demyx passed the notebook over. Axel placed it in my hands.

I immediately felt my high blood pressure lower and my mind to begin to calm down once the notebook was safely in my possession. I gripped the book of paper tightly and sent a glare Demyx's and Axel's way.

"Assholes," I mumbled with a sharp tone. They didn't hear me though, which was probably a good thing anyways.

For the rest of the hour I wrote, ending up with about 5 and a half pages by the time I was released to go home.

I hurriedly packed my backpack and slung it over my shoulder. I high-tailed it out of the detention room, desperate to get home so I could sleep. But of course I couldn't get home without some complications.

When I reached the doors that led outside I heard the soft _pit-pat_ of raindrops on the cement just outside the door. Damn it. How could it be raining when it was so sunny earlier this afternoon? I thought of the options I had before leaving the school: I could either walk home in the rain and risk getting terribly sick or I could call my mom at work, ask for a ride home, and risk getting grounded after telling her the reason why I was still at school...both were not great options.

I sighed, not really liking one over the other. But did I really want to get grounded? No. Walking it is then. I'd rather be sick for a few days than be grounded for the rest of my life, or at least a few weeks.

Before walking out into the rainfall I pulled my backpack off my shoulders and held it over my head thinking I could stay at least a little bit dry by doing this.

I shoved open the door with my right shoulder and "dove" into the downpour. Yes that's right _downpour. _While I was contemplating my options the soft pattering of steady rain turned into a huge downpour. This all happened in just a matter of minutes. Just my luck, huh?

By the time I walked out of Destiny Island High's parking lot my fingers were frozen and my backpack was soaked. Lovely. As I walked up the street I heard a car coming up the street from behind me. I stopped where I was on the sidewalk and took my backpack off of my head. With it I shielded my body, just incase I got splashed. Destiny Islanders may be nice, but they weren't very considerate of the people who just happen to be caught in the storm. I waited patiently, cowering behind my backpack, for the car to pass by. Except it...didn't. Instead it stopped in front of me and I heard a, "Yo, Roxas!" come from someone inside it. The voice sounded familiar so I took a step forward. I squinted my blue eyes at the car through the rain to see Axel smiling back at me.

"Axel?" I asked, just wanting to make sure I was right.

"The one and only," He replied. "Want a ride?" He then offered. The back seat window then rolled down and through the rain I saw an excited Demyx waving at me. Next to the blond a bored looking Zexion stared at me. I wasn't sure if I wanted a ride from him. I was still pretty peeved at them for what they did to me in detention. I thought about it for a minute while the three other students stared at me expectantly.

"Come on Roxas! Get in the car! You are going to get pneumonia if you walk home." Axel told me. He had a good point. I sighed. Seeing that he convinced me, Axel pushed open the passenger door. I climbed in and buckled up. Once I was settled Axel put the car in drive and drove up the street.

"We have to drop off Demyx and Zexion first, and then I'll bring you home," Axel explained. I nodded.

"Works for me..." I replied. Just as long as I don't have to walk in the rain, pretty much anything works for me.

Demyx then poked his head between my seat and Axel's seat and looked at me. I leaned away from him and stared back into his bright blue eyes.

"Roxas, you're sitting in the passenger seat." He stated in a rather girlish squeal. I widened my eyes at the sound of his suddenly high voce. _'Did that just seriously come from him?'_

"Yeah...so?" I wondered why that was such a big deal.

"You know what that means right?" He asked, his voice still very high.

"Demyx, calm down. You are starting to sound like a girl again." Zexion spoke as he looked out the window. _'So it's normal for him?' _Demyx sighed and cleared his throat.

"You _do _know what that means, yes?" Demyx questioned again. I shook my head.

"No...what does it mean?" I asked, now curious.

"It means you're one of us now!" Demyx shouted causing everyone else in the car to cringe. _'What?!' _I shouted in my own head.

"Er...what do you mean?" I asked.

"Well, Axel never ever let's anyone sit in the passenger seat, besides me and Zexion, of course!" Demyx started to explain. I looked at him curiously, and then glanced up quickly at Axel. He had his eyes glued to the road.

"But, I don't get it. How does that make me 'one of you'?" I wondered confused, looking back at the blond.

"It's simple really. Axel only let's the people he really likes sit in the front. So since you are sitting in the front then he must really like you. And when Axel really likes someone that means he wants to be friends, obviously, and so he isn't going to let you go just like that. When you meet Axel you're pretty much stuck with him for life. And Axel seems to like you a whole lot so I automatically assume that you are now one of us." Demyx finished grinning. He looked up at Axel and said, "Aren't I right Axey?" I looked up at him too waiting for him to reply. He didn't, but I could see a small smile on his face as he faced the rode. "Axel's weird like that."

"Are you sure Dem? Maybe he really wants to just drive really fast then push me out the door...to, like, kill me or something..." I smirked. Demyx's expression turned from a happy one to one of complete horror. Axel's small smile didn't fade though. He knew I was just joking around, but Demyx took me literally.

"Roxas! He would never to that! He may be rough and sometimes a bit cruel, but he isn't a murderer!" Demyx replied with complete seriousness. He face softened into a smile after a few seconds. "Don't worry Roxy; you're definitely one of us now." He grinned at me. I wasn't sure I liked the sound of that, but I smiled back at him whole-heartedly.

Demyx leaned back in his seat and began to stare out the window just like Zexion was doing so the car was silent for the rest of the way to Demyx's home.

--

By the time we arrived in front of, what I assumed to be Demyx's house, the rain had lightened up a bit. We had to wake Demyx up because he had fallen asleep after our conversation and boy was he a deep sleeper. It took a few shouts in his ear, a bottle of water dumped on his head, and a kick in the shin-courtesy of Zexion- to wake him up.

It turned out Zexion was going over his house to so the both go out of the car and went to stand side-by-side on the sidewalk. They both waved goodbye, Demyx more enthusiastic then Zexion, and then we drove off towards my house.

"Do you remember where it is?" I asked.

"Of course I do." He replied nodding.

"Okay," I replied and leaned back into the car seat. We stayed silent in the car until we reached my house. At one point Axel reached over and turned on the radio to fill the silence. I don't think he thought that it was one of those awkward quiet moments though; I think he just didn't like the quiet very much...

When we finally drove up to my house the rain had finally subsided. I looked up at the building where I lived and saw there weren't any lights on. It was obvious no one was home yet. I looked over at Axel to see that his green eyes were watching me.

"Well thank you very much for the ride. I really appreciate it," I told him in all honesty.

"Not a problem," He grinned. And I believed him. I unbuckled the seat belt and opened the door. The after-rain smell floated into the car. I took a deep breath of it as I stuck my right leg out of Axel's green car. I stopped moving my body after that and looked back at the fiery red head.

"Hey Axel?" I asked.

"Yeah Rox?" He answered.

"Why are you so nice to me?" I wondered. "Aren't upperclassmen supposed to not care about freshmen? Because that's what I've heard from other people. But you, Demyx, and Zexion aren't like that. So I'm curious why." He laughed.

"We don't usually fit most stereotypes," He pointed out.

"That's true..." I agreed.

"But do you remember what Dem said?" He asked.

"Yeah, about the way you indicate if you like someone or not?" I replied. "What about it?"

"Well Roxas, everything he said was true." Axel told me.

"_Everything_?" I blinked.

"Yes, everything." He nodded. "You see Demy and I have known each other for a while and I think he knows me better then I know myself sometimes. He figured out throughout our friendship that certain things I do have reasons behind them. Like with the car seating. I only let people who are my friends, or who I want to be my friends, to sit in the passenger seat. That's how it worked with Zexion when I first met him. It kind of subtly tells the person 'Hey you're cool. I like you. Want to be friends?'. Demyx figured that out a while ago and he's always been right, though I've never wanted to tell him so." _'Interesting.'_ "It's strange, I've known Demyx for so long, though he still surprises me with how intelligent and observing he can be." Axel laughed. "But any who, since I said Dem was right, consider yourself a part of this car pool and a permanent place in our 'friendship circle'." He grinned at me.

"Wouldn't it be more of a friendship _square_?" I asked. He shrugged.

"I suppose you are right..." I sighed.

"Well thank you again Axel. Really I mean it." I told him once again.

"Really it's no problem. I told you I'd do anything to protect my Number 1 Fanboy!" He smirked. I rolled my eyes. He reached a hand up and ruffled my hair, a smile now replacing the smirk. I gave him my own genuine smile and lifted my body out of the car, remembering to grab my backpack on the way out. I walked around the front of it and stood on the sidewalk. Before turning away, I waved at Axel through the window, then began walking.

I got to my front door, took out my keys, and unlocked it. I turned the knob and opened it. Just before I stepped in Axel called out to me from his car. I jumped, startled because I didn't know he hadn't left yet, and turned around to face him.

"Yeah?!" I called back to him.

"Remember what Demyx said: You're stuck with me from now on." I just barely saw his grin before he waved and gunned his green car down the street. I grinned to myself as I walked into my home.

And for some reason when _**he** _said that the thought that ran through my head as I slammed my front door shut was, '_I think I could deal with that.'_

* * *

_There you go! I hope it was long enough! And I hope it wasn't as bad I thought xD. Anyways please feel free to review to tell me what you think! And I'll try to get the fourth chapter up ASAP!_

_Oh and I forgot this at the beginning, but Thank you to all who have already read and reviewed! You have no clue how much that means to me! I heart you all!! So again: **Thank you!**_


	4. Colds are dreadful, sometimes

**Hiya! Here is the next chapter! Sorry, for the delay. But I am trying to make these chapters longer and in order to do that, I am taking my time. Also, I have a feeling you don't want a really crappy chapter, so time is needed there too XD.**

**Heh heh, anyways, I've decided that on the side I will be putting little conflict like things in this story that include the other characters (example: Sora, Kairi, Riku, Namine, etc.). Now they may not all be conflicts but I haven't decided that yet. I'll just write the chapters and figure it out then XD But don't fret, this story will still mainly be about Axel and Roxas, but then there will be little things on the side so it doesn't get too boring, I suppose. Wow, I repeat myself waay too many times.**

**I realized that I made a few mistakes in my last chapter about Demyx's eyes. Apparently they are some sort of greenish color, which I did not know at the timeof writing the 3rd chapter. But I've decided to call them sea-green from now on. Sorry for the mistake XD  
Disclaimer: I, RecklessxDreamer, do not own anything mentioned in this story. I do not own _Kingdom Hearts_, _Simple & Clean, or Naruto, _unfortunately.  
--**

**Chapter 4.**

When I went to bed that night, I once again had trouble falling to sleep and staying that way. But this time it wasn't due to weird, awkward dreams, but because I couldn't get my body temperature right. At one point I was freezing so I would wrap myself in my covers; then I would be hot so I would kick the covers off. My face felt like it was on fire while my body felt like it was wrapped in a sheet of ice.

I got up slowly and walked to the bathroom. I flicked on the light and stood at the sink. After turning the cold water nozzle on all the way to the right, I waited a few seconds. Once I made sure that the water was freezing, I cupped a handful of it and splashed it onto my face. My body shivered from the cold, but my face welcomed it gratefully. The coolness of the water felt wonderful against my heated face.

I splashed my hot face a few more times before going back to bed. Now, feeling a little chilly, I wrapped myself in the warmth of the sheets, until, once again, my body began to overheat and I started to feel sick. Annoyed and nauseous, I kicked off sheets and got of bed I padded silently over to my window and opened it all the way. A gust of cool autumn air rushed in, caressing my over-heated body.

I stood in front of my window for a few minutes until my body suddenly began moving all on its own. I didn't know where I was going until I come to the front door. My hand turned the doorknob on its own and my bare feet brought me outside. It finally clicked in my head where I was going when my body turned itself to the left.

The beach.

My body had decided that it would be nice to take a walk down to the beach at whatever time it was in the morning. And my mind agreed. I hardly cared, so I let my body take me away from my house.

When my feet touched the sand, my legs collapsed beneath me and I fell flat on my face in the nice, cool ground. I sighed and yawned as I curled up into a tight ball on the shore. An autumn wind made me to start shivering violently, but I couldn't seem to pick myself up and go back home.

Instead, I closed my now heavy eyelids and I felt myself drift off into a light sleep.

Just as I was almost completely asleep, I was woken up by a sudden and distant voice.

"Roxas?! Roxas?! Wake up!" It was Axel. I could recognize his voice anywhere. I opened my eyes and looked up at him with blurry vision.

"Hey Axel," I said casually/

"Don't 'Hey Axel' me. Roxas, what the hell are you doing out here? And without a coat!" Boy did he sound pissed. Even in the groggy state I was in, I still recognized that tone of voice. Still, I tried to make light of the situation.

"Eh, just hanging around and relaxing," I laughed weakly. He didn't join in. Instead he gave me a very dangerous look that told me to shut up as he crouched down beside me. My laughter stopped abruptly and I looked down guiltily at the sand, "Sorry." He gave a sharp sigh. I started to shiver again. I looked back at him to see his face soften as he took off his long, black coat and wrap it around me.

"Ya'know, if I wasn't so worried about you and your health I would have killed you for being such an idiot by now," Axel mumbled to me as he picked me up slowly, bridal style.

"Lucky me then, huh?" I smiled slightly.

"Yes, very lucky you..." He replied. I sighed and made myself comfortable in the coat, which was very warm from Axel's body. It also kind of smelled like smoke. Not the cigarette smoke smell, but the campfire-burning leaves smoke smell. It was a very strong scent and I wondered briefly about why I hadn't noticed this distinct smell before. I figured it didn't really matter after about 30 seconds, and I took a long, deep breath, filling my nose with Axel's scent and filing it to memory.

"You smell nice." My eyes became wide. Did I just seriously say that out loud? That was meant to be a thought! Maybe I said it too softly for him to hear...maybe luck was one my side tonight.

"Thanks," So he had heard it. "but don't think flattering me will not get me to forgive you so easily for being an idiot," He replied. I sighed.

"Okay, I won't..." I said quietly and became silent.

A few minutes pass before Axel spoke to me again and by then, I was hardly even awake.

"Are you feeling any warmer, Rox?" He asked, his voice calm with a tone of concern.

"Yes," I replied drowsily. _'Except my nose is cold...' _I turned my head and pressed my nose against Axel's bare arm and I felt him shudder. His skin was unbelievably warm...by now I have a feeling I would have frozen so how could he remain so warm? I sighed and let the warmth of Axel's body and the steady rhythm of his stepping lull me to sleep.

--

The next time I woke up, I found I was in my own bed, covers wrapped tightly around me. I guess I didn't move around much while I slept. It took me a few minutes to realize that it was a school day and that I should probably get up. I glanced over at my digital clock beside my bed.

11:45.

A few seconds passed before it clicked in my head that I was late for school.

"Shit!" I cursed softly and jumped out of bed. I stumbled a little and held my head. The sudden movement made me dizzy. I coughed a couple times before I practically ran out of my room. I skidded to a stop in front of the bathroom and I flipped on the light. I heard Mom come up the stairs as I walked into the bathroom. Then I heard her shriek.

"Roxas!" She yelled from the other end of the hallway. I poked my head out of the bathroom, unsure of what I did wrong. "Get over here at once Roxas!" I obeyed her immediately and walked over to my mother. Mom could be frightening sometimes, and when she got mad it was scary. As I made my way over to my mother I wracked my brain for a reason why she could be mad. I came to the conclusion that she was made at the fact that I was very late for school. Maybe she thought I was skipping...

I went with my gut feeling and immediately began apologizing, hoping they sounded sincere to her.

"Mom, I'm sorry I am up so late! I don't know what's wrong with me! My alarm didn't go off or anything! Don't worry though; I am willing to accept any punishment you have for me if you thought I was skipping or some..." Mom surprised me, cutting me off in mid sentence, when she grasped my arm and pulled me towards her the rest of the way. She placed the back of her free hand on my forehead. It felt cool against my warm skin.

"Hmm...still warm..." She mumbled. '_Still?' _I looked at her confused. "Okay honey, go back to bed; you are staying home from school again."

"Again?" I questioned.

"Yes, you stayed home yesterday too, but the whole day you were sleeping. You had a nasty fever." Mom explained.

"So, I've been sleeping..."

"For almost a day and a half, seeing as how you just woke up." Mom finished for me. She pushed my gently in the direction of my bedroom and we walked together. Before I spoke again, I coughed a couple more times. Mom gave me a sympathetic look.

"So wait...Axel found me..." I asked.

"At around 1:00 Thursday morning," Mom told me. We walked into my bedroom and I got back into bed, wrapping the sheets around me. Mom stood over me. "And you're lucky he did or else you would probably be a lot worse then this. I hope the next time you see that boy you will tell him how much you appreciated what he did."

"I will Mom," I assured her.

"Good," Mom smiled down at me and leaned over to kiss my forehead lovingly. "Oh, Axel stopped by yesterday morning asking how you were. I told him that you had a fever and were sleeping. He said he'd come back today after school to check up on you. Sora also stopped by bringing the work you missed. Roxas, you don't know how lucky you are to have so many people around that care about you." Mom folded her arms across her chest and smiled again.

"Mmm..." I answered softly. She unfolded her arms and sighed.

"Now, would you like something to eat?" She asked.

"I'm surprisingly not hungry," I replied, coughing a little.

"Well then I'll go get you some medicine to help with your stuffy nose and that coughing. Oh and I'll bring some toast so you aren't taking the medicine on an empty stomach," She told me then left quickly before I could answer.

"Umm...Okay..." _'I guess it didn't really matter if I was hungry or not...' _A few minutes later Mom was back holding a plate with toast on it and some cold medicine.

She handed both things to me and I began to eat the toast.

"When you finish that make sure you take your medicine," Mom reminded me. I nodded. "Anything else?"

"Yeah, can you bring me that controller? And turn on the PS2 for me?" I pointed to the PS2 controller lying next to my small T.V. Mom picked it up and brought it over to me. She handed it to me and then pressed on the Playstation 2 switch to start it up.

"Thank you," I said gratefully.

"You're welcome," She replied and walked to the door. Before leaving, she looked back at me. "Don't play those silly games all day now. I want you to rest some more."

"Yes mother," I answered, resisting the urge to roll my eyes.

"Don't 'yes mother' me, Roxas. I want you to get better. And the only way that'll happen is by getting a lot of rest, not by playing video games," She told me. I nodded and she left. I rolled my eyes at her when the door closed. I took the medicine quickly and placed it next to the empty plate.

I turned to the screen and waited for whatever game that was in the system to load and get to the main menu. That only took a minute or so and I soon found out that I would be playing _Naruto: Ultimate Ninja 3._ I loaded one of my saved files and began playing the game. I hadn't played it for a while so it took me a few minutes to get used to the controls, but as soon as I did I started to remember how fun it was.

The next time I looked at my clock I saw that it was 1:15. I decided to stop playing the addicting game and do some reading. I picked up the novel that I had to finish for school and read a few chapters before being interrupted by Mom.

"Hey Rox, you hungry?" She asked, poking her head into my room. Right on cue, my stomach growled loudly. I looked up and nodded. "Okay, I'll be back soon." She walked back downstairs and I went back to reading.

--

Mom brought back soup after about 10 minutes. She left me to happily eat alone. As soon as my stomach was full I placed the bowl on my nightstand and snuggled deeper into my covers. I fell asleep, one again, soon after.

--

When I woke up at around 2:30, I saw Sora lying comfortably on my big, forest green beanbag chair. He was staring quietly at my ceiling. I looked up to see what was so intriguing, but only saw my boring white paint. I looked back down at my cousin.

"Sora?" I said to him to get him out of his daze. He shook his head after hearing his name and averted his deep blue eyes away from the ceiling to look at me. His mouth broke into a grin, which I returned, and he jumped up from his seat.

"Roxas! You're awake! How'ya feeling?" Ah, caring, concerned Sora.

"I'm feeling better." I replied, "Thanks for asking."

"No problem. Your mom said you were unconscious all day yesterday," He said sounding amazed by this.

"So I've heard," I replied.

"I would have stayed longer to visit you after I brought your homework, but I had so many things to do that I couldn't. Sorry," He apologized, looking at his feet.

"Nah, don't sweat it. It wasn't like I would have been awake for a visit," I grinned. "So what are you doing here? I mean, besides to visit me of course." Sora laughed.

"Yeah, well, I also came to bring you more missed work..."

"Great, thanks..." I said dryly, not looking forward to the work load.

"Sorry," He said sincerely. "The other thing is that I'm having Kairi issues." He finished off solemnly.

"Oh? What's going on between you two? A few days ago you guys were fine-and-dandy..." I said, unable to keep the curiosity from my voice.

"Well..." but before he could continue, two complete idiots barged into my room.

"Axel? Demyx?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Roxas!" They shouted happily, running over to me (successfully, but accidentally shoving Sora out of the way), and flinging their arms around me, hugging me so tightly I thought I was going to burst.

"Axel, Demyx, let go! You're hurting me!" I choked out. Immediately the two juniors let go over me and stepped back, allowing me some space. I gasped for air, taking deep breaths until I was breathing steadily again. "What are you two doing here anyways?"

"We wanted to see how you were feeling, duh," Demyx explained, sitting on my bed. His eyes wandered around my room, then fell on Sora. "Who's he?" Demyx asked, curiously, pointing to the brunette sitting on the beanbag chair, oblivious to everything.

"That's my cousin, Sora," I replied. Sora heard his name again and looked over at me. "Sora, this is Demyx and the red head is Axel." I pointed to Demyx, who waved, and then to Axel, who was still studying the items tacked up on my cork board. Axel finally turned and looked at me. That's when I noticed the huge, black and blue bruise on his left cheek. I couldn't help, but grin, remembering the night that I punched him in the face.

"Cousin, eh?" He said, glancing at Sora, who nodded.

"Yupp." I replied.

"So he's not your boyfriend?" I looked at Sora immediately after Axel asked that and we both widened our eyes and blushed. Sora jumped up and shook his head frantically.

"No, no no! He's my relative! And...and I have a girlfriend!" Sora said hurriedly.

"Speaking of said girlfriend, what's going on between you and Kairi? You were just about to tell me before these two idiots showed up," I asked, nodding to Demyx and Axel, who both looked slightly hurt at being called an idiot. Sora looked briefly down at his feet, but returned his gaze to me.

"...Uh you know what? I'll tell you some other time. It isn't really a big deal. I'm just going to go. See you later Rox. And nice meeting you Demyx and Axel," Sora waved and ran out the door, remembering to shut it behind him.

"What's up with him?" Axel asked, raising an eyebrow at the door Sora had just exited through.

"I don't really know. Girlfriend troubles, I'm guessing." Axel shrugged and surveyed my room.

"Why'd you two assume that he was my boyfriend anyway?" I asked curiously. They both shrugged.

"He seemed like your type..." Demyx explained.

"First of all: I don't like guys. Second of all: how do you know what my 'type' is? We've only known each other for about a day," I told him. The upperclassmen shrugged.

"It was a feeling, that's all." Demyx reasoned, getting up and walking over to my PS2.

"Yeah hokay..." I scoffed, rolling my azure eyes.

"Any good games?" Demyx asked, crouching down and shuffling through the cases.

"Depending on your definition of good," I replied stretching my arms. I yawned as Axel crouched by Demyx and looked with him.

"_Kingdom Hearts_?" Axel read off one title and picked up the game. He turned and raised an eyebrow accusingly.

"Hey! Don't judge it by it's title! Really, it's a good game! Weren't you ever told not to judge a book by its cover?" I asked.

"I don't read much." Axel replied simply, playing Kingdom Hearts next to him.

"That explains a lot..." I murmured, rolling my eyes. "Well you shouldn't judge a game by its title. If you've never played it you don't know what you've been missing!" Axel picked _Kingdom Hearts _up again and stared at it. He tossed it into Demyx's hands and stood up.

"Dem, put it in," Axel ordered, picking up the other controller. He walked over to my bed and swatted at my legs. "Scooch over." I shimmied over and Axel plunked himself down next to me.

"Demyx took out my Naruto game and inserted _Kingdom Hearts _into the system and then fell backwards onto the beanbag chair.

We were silent until the game's menu game onto the screen.

"New game or Load game?" Axel questioned. I shrugged.

"Whichever you want," I replied. Axel decided on the New Game optioned. He set up the settings to what suited him and pressed 'Ok'. All three of us watched, in silence, the opening cut scene and Demyx bobbed his head slightly to _Simple and Clean_, the opening song.

About 45 minutes later, Axel was pretty far in the game. At one point, Axel tossed the controller to Demyx so he could have a try at it. We quickly found out that Demyx is video game-challenged. I couldn't help but laugh at his contorted face as he tried to fend off the Heartless.

Demyx soon gave up and tossed the controller back to Axel so he could continue playing.

Mom came into my room a few minutes later with another dose of medicine. I looked up at her when she arrived to see a surprised look on her face. Demyx had dozed off in the beanbag chair, Axel was fully sucked into the game and I probably looked about half asleep as I watched Axel play. I watched her while she looked at Demyx and Axel, trying to fight a smile.

"Rox," She said quietly. "Here's your medicine." I took it from her and downed it in a second, cringing at the taste. She handed me a bottle of water and tried to smooth down my unruly hair. "How are you feeling?"

"Better, thanks," I replied.

"That's good. But you look exhausted. Do you want me to get these two out so you can sleep?" She asked.

"No, I'll do it myself," I answered quickly.

"Okay." She smiled and walked out. I let out a yawn and Axel took his eyes away from the T.V. screen to look at me.

"Tired?" I nodded. Axel grinned. He found a save point and got up to shut off the PS2. I watched as the red head put away the controller and walked over to his sleeping friend. He nudged the blond with his foot and the blond woke with a jolt. He had a surprised look on his face. I snickered. Demyx gazed up to see Axel smirking at him.

"Why'd you do that?" He demanded.

"It's time to go. I had to wake you up." Axel responded.

"Oh...okay..." Demyx replied and stood up. They both made their way back to me. Demyx flung his arms around me to hug me goodbye, which I half-expected him to do. When he let go of me, Axel stepped up and placed his hand on my forehead. I shivered, his hand surprisingly cold, unlike the night he had found me on the beach.

"You are cooler now," He stated. I stared up at him and he took his hand away. He placed it on top of my head and ruffled my spiky hair.

'W_hy does everyone do that?!' _I wondered briefly. Axel stepped away from me and made his way towards Demyx, who was waiting patiently by the door.

"Bye Roxas! See you later, right?" Demyx asked, staring at me with his sea-green eyes as he opened the door.

"Yeah, sure," I replied and nodded.

"Good," Demyx grinned then disappeared out the door. Blue then met another pair of green. A grin grew on Axel's face as he stared at me.

"What?" I blinked, unsure of why he was looking at me the way he was.

"Nothing," He replied, innocently. I raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "I was just thinking."

"Thinking about what?" I prodded.

"Nothing you need to worry your pretty little head about, okay?" Axel replied. Eyebrow still raised in suspicion, I nodded.

"Sure," I said. Axel started to leave, but then I remembered something I was supposed to tell him. "Axel!" The red head stepped back in the room instantly at the sound of his name. I heard Demyx call for him, telling Axel to get his ass downstairs, which I figured he heard too, but we both ignored him.

"Yeah Rox?" Axel asked, quirking a red eyebrow.

"Thanks," I told him softly. Axel lowered the eyebrow and gave me a smile. I knew I didn't have to say anymore by that smile.

"You're welcome, Roxy. What are friends for, right?" Axel replied.

"Yeah, you're right..." I trailed off, looking away from him. I stared down at my bed covers, until, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Axel leave, shaking his head, grinning. Only then, when the door clicked shut, did I let myself smile at his last statement.

After Axel and Demyx left I immediately realized something: I hadn't gotten any butterflies the whole time Axel was here. Weird. The reason for their presence must have been because I was nervous the first few times I spoke to him. I always get nervous when I meet someone new...

I sighed, glad that they were gone, hopefully for good too. Now all I have to get rid of the thoughts and dreams I have about him.

Stretching, I decided not to worry about that for now. I got out of bed, not feeling as tired as I was before and made my way downstairs, grabbing a sweatshirt from the closet and slipping it on before leaving. I walked into the kitchen and found Mom leaning over the counter flipping through a magazine. I opened the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water, since I left the other one upstairs. I was greeted by Mom's smiling face when I closed the door and turned around.

"Hey Roxas."

"Hi." I smiled back at her.

"How are you feeling Sweetie?" She asked.

"Better Mom," I replied.

"Good."

"I'm going to go watch some T.V. in the living room, okay?" I told her heading off in the direction of the living room. Mom nodded.

"Oh Roxas," She turned to face me. I stopped near the living room's door frame and turned my head to her.

"Hmmm?"

"Was there something wrong with Sora today? He seemed in a huge hurry to talk to you this afternoon," She asked, concern obvious in her voice. I shrugged.

"There was definitely something wrong. I am just not clear on what the problem actually is. He was going to tell me, but then Axel and Demyx interrupted him. Then he left in a rush," I explained.

"Ooh..." She trailed off in thought. I took that moment to slip out of the room and plunk myself in front of the T.V.

I flipped absentmindedly through the channels before stopping on some program about Aliens and if they are actually real or not, blah blah blah.

After only a few minutes of watching the Alien program I decided that it was a load of crap and changed the channel. Unfortunately though, the programs went downhill from there.

Eventually I came across a channel that showed programs for little kids and figured that they would be somewhat better then all the reality shows that were on. Sure, my brain was slowly going to turn to soup, but it was turning to soup at a much slower pace then if I watch some reality show where I wouldn't even understand what was going on.

Turns out, I completely zoned out after the first show came to an end. I do _not _have the longest attention span when it comes to certain things. I was so out of it that I hadn't even heard Mom calling for me until she was right next to my ear shouting my name.

I shook my head and blinked a few times before giving Mom my undivided attention.

"Roxas, Sora is on the phone asking for you," She told me. I got up from my seat and walked into the kitchen where the phone was. When it was in my hand I raised it to my ear, saying, "Hey Sora."

"Roxas!" He sounded anxious.

"What's up? Is something wrong, Sor?" I questioned as my mother hovered around me with a concerned expression on her face.

"Can we talk?" He asked.

"Uh, yeah sure..." I replied, deciding not to point out that we were already talking.

"Meet me down at the beach, okay?" Sora said.

"Yeah, okay."

"Great. See you." And with that Sora hung up.

"Is something wrong?" My mother instantly asked after I placed the receiver on the base.

"Seems like it. I have to go meet him at the beach right away." I told her. She nodded, and after reminding me to grab a coat, she sent me on my way to the beach, telling me to get there quickly so he wouldn't have to wait very long.

I ran out of the house and decided I'd get to the beach faster if I rode my bike. After getting out my bike, I hopped on and I peddled down the hill, gathering speed rather quickly.

In no time I arrived at the beach. I jumped off my bike, letting it fall to the ground, and stepped onto the sand. I searched the shore for Sora and found him sitting on the pier with his arms wrapped around his legs. Even from a distance I could tell something was wrong. His chin was resting on his knees and his whole body seemed to be shaking.

"Uh oh, something is definitely wrong." I mumbled softly and started my way towards my cousin, dreading the worst.

**--  
Uh ohs! What's up with Sora?? I dunno! GASP! We'll have to find out next chapter!  
So please review! Thank yous! Oh and by the way, encouragement, ideas, and constuctive criticism are welcome here with open arms.  
Anything flame related will be ignored or better yet, use to roast marshmallows!  
Oh and I would like to thank my Editor, INeedToFindYou, for well editing this chapter. So THANK YOU EDITOR-SAMA!**


	5. An Important Author's Note: Decisions

_**Author's Note!! **_

**Okay so here's the issue: I have two versions of chapter five written: One where things happen which will cause Riku and Sora to be together in the end. The other where things happen between Kairi and Sora, but there will be no Sora/Riku. **

**I love both pairings (SoraKairi & SoraRiku) but I can't decide which to put up. So this is where you, as the reviewers and readers, come in. Since I love both (and don't really mind which pairing is in here), I need your help in making this decision. (Because I seriously can't decideXD) The future of this story is in your trusty hands .**

**So tell me your choice in a review or a PM, okay?**

Choice A: (Because of this version of the chapter) Stuff happens between Sora and Kairi and No SoraRiku is in this fic at all (AND it stays AkuRoku +tiny side pairings that won't make much of a difference to the story)

**ORR**

Choice B: SoraRiku happens later on because of this version. No ifs, ands, or buts about it.

**Make you choice (remember to think wisely about it too) and don't forget to tell me! **

**This will be up for 2 1/2 to 3 weeks tops. I will be keeping track of which choice has how many votes and whatever.**

****

So I bid you farwell until 2 1/2-3 weeks are up and I will make my final decision!

TTFN! :D  
Your appreciative writer,

-Kimiko (RecklessxDreamer, obv.)


	6. What's bothering Sora?

**Author's Note of DOOM!:** I'm baaaaack!XD Okay so I had put up another note earlier and it had asked you to pick out of 2 choices which one you'd like to see happen in the story. SO a few minutes ago I counted all of the reviews/PMs for each choice and the winning choice is...-drum roll-...CHOICE B, which is a chapter that will cause SoRi in later on..

**Thank you to all those who "voted"! I appreciate your help and input. **  
(Also some may have read this chapter already, but that's because I put it up for a day then took it down so I could do this voting thing instead)

**Disclaimer:** ...honestly, do I really have to state the obvious?

Onward with the reading! I hope you all like it (and aren't disappointed! XD)!!

**--**

**Chapter 5**

As I got closer to my cousin, I could barely make out the whimpers coming from him. My eyebrows furrowed in worry and I placed myself quietly next to Sora without saying a word. I knew he realized I was there next to him even if he didn't look up when I arrived. I looked out into the ocean and watched the waves roll in. I coughed into my palm a couple times before I placed my eyes on the brunet beside me.

"Hey Sora," I said quietly to him. "What's up?" I placed my right hand on his shoulder, trying to comfort him. He stayed silent, except for all the sniffling he was doing, and slowly looked over at me.

I could tell he had been crying only moments before with just one glance at his face. His huge, normally sparkling, blue eyes were dull and encircled with red, puffy skin. His nose also held a red tint and his bottom lip trembled ever so slightly as he forced himself to keep from tearing again.

I watched him open his mouth, seemingly wanting to say something, but then close it again after nothing came out. Sora looked away and stared out at the ocean, just as I'd done when I first arrived.

"Okay," I sighed slowly. "Let me try guessing what's wrong. Nod you head 'yes' if something is right, shake your head 'no' if something is wrong. Got it?" Sora nodded slightly.

Let's see now..." I paused, thinking for a few seconds and then said, "Does this problem deal with people?"

Nod.

"One person?"

Shake.

"Two people?"

Nod.

"Is one person Riku?"

Nod.

"The other Kairi?"

Nod.

"Wow, I'm good." I mumbled and chuckled, but then got right back to business. "Okay so did you get into a huge fight with them? Or even a small fight?"

Shake.

"Does this have to do with your relationship with Kairi?"

Nod. I paused to think again for a couple minutes.

"Well Sora, I don't actually know what to ask from here. I'm completely stumped," I said, still thinking about what Sora's problem could be. A deep breath came from my cousin.

"Listen carefully, okay Roxas? I only want to say this once," Sora said with a very serious tone. He hadn't taken his eyes off the water yet. I nodded, then realized he couldn't see me and said, "Yeah, okay." Another deep breath was taken.

"I called you down here to tell you that I'm not in love with Kairi anymore." I blinked at the brunet. _'Was this what he wanted to tell me earlier in my room?_ _Is that what he meant by having "Kairi issues"? I thought he and Kairi had a fight or something...Guess I was wrong!'_ I thought to myself. I smiled at my cousin.

"Is that all? It happens to a lot of people. You could be or think you could be in love with a person, but then events change how you really feel. You come to realize that the someone you thought you loved with all your heart isn't really right for you. It's nothing to get so upset about. I mean, of course, it is upsetting at first, but over some time you'll heal and learn from that," I explained to him.

"No Roxas. I wasn't finished." Sora said coldly, which surprised me since, after all, it came from him.

"Oh..." I replied softly.

"I'm really in love, truly and deeply in love, with someone else. I just know it! This feeling is something I had never felt with Kairi. This love is much more genuine! It's so powerful at times that it makes my heart ache Roxas." Sora finished passionately. By the time he finished I was staring at him intently. I had to shake my head a couple times to get myself out of the daze-like state I was in.

"So, who's the lucky girl?" I questioned with a smile on my face.

"Rox, this love I have isn't for a girl..." Sora said softly, glancing at me then quickly looking away. I remained silent for what seemed like a long time before barely whispering, "Who Sora? Who is your love meant for?"

"...R-Riku." Sora looked at me, but avoided my eyes, as if he was afraid of receiving a cold, accusing stare. I'm pretty sure, though, that they didn't hold the stare he expected. Well actually, I'm sure they didn't hold any sort of emotion at all, but as I've been told, they express every emotion I feel. I was in the middle of processing the information I had just been given. _'Sora's not in love with Kairi, but instead he's in love with...Riku...'_ I looked at my cousin and caught his gaze. We stared at each other until I saw Sora's big blue eyes get teary. He tried blinking them away, but it was too late by then and they were flowing down his cheeks. He quickly looked away and wiped the tears away with the backs of his hands. I blinked at him before I finally came to realize that he was crying.

"Sora...why are you crying?" I hate it when my cousin cries.

"Because now you're never going to want to talk to me or see me again." He replied. I raised an eyebrow, confused.

"Why? Why _wouldn't_ I want to see you or talk to you?" I questioned.

"Because I'm gay. No one ever wants to hang out with--!" I didn't even let him finish. The first sentence made me realize what he was trying to explain to me. I punched him hard in the face (I seem to be doing that a lot lately...), shutting him up immediately. I heard a whimper come from him as a hand flew to his nose. He stared at me while he rubbed his nose. I stood up and glared down at him. Sora watched me closely.

"Sora, don't you ever fucking say that! Never let me hear you talking like that ever again! Just because you love Riku doesn't mean I am going to judge you. I am you fucking cousin. Your own blood! I will never, ever judge you because of your sexual preference. EVER! Nobody else should either. If they do don't waste your time on them. You're an amazing guy, Sora. An amazing friend and an awesome cousin. You being gay won't change any of that. And people should see that like I do. But seriously Sora, don't stress over it because you have nothing to worry about. Everyone will still want to hang out with you and talk to you and not care that you're in love with Riku. Everyone is going to love you just the same. I swear on that." I finished, chest heaving, but I was feeling calmer now. I sighed, sitting myself back down next to the brunet, but stared out at the ocean, not at him.

Suddenly I heard quivering laughter coming from the teen beside me and I looked at him confused. Sora's laughter bubbled out of him in small short burst as he wiped away the remaining tears.

"Sora...?" I questioned, still puzzled at my cousins reaction.

"Thank you Roxas. I really needed to hear that," Sora laughed a little more and stood up. I stared at him bewildered as he offered me a hand. I grasped his in mine and he pulled me up into a standing position beside him. "That really knocked some sense into me. I was talking irrationally and I was just so worried about what would happen later on that I just didn't think clearly. And you are absolutely right too. In the future, people who judge me, the people who can't put aside the fact that I am gay, aren't worth a second glance." There was a new confidence in his voice as he said that and I looked at him finally to see a broad grin on his face, the sparkle back in his eyes along with it.

"You're welcome Sora." I replied with my own smile and patted him on the shoulder. By then night had fallen upon us and the only light we were left with was the soft glow of the stars, the few streetlights that were lit, and a little light coming from a few houses nearby.

"You ready to head back?" Sora then asked. I nodded and we turned and began walking back to the street in silence. The silence gave me time to think. My mind was still having a bit of trouble wrapping itself around the fact that Sora was in love with Riku, his best friend. Truly deeply in love with him. It was just such a surprise...and I definitely hadn't been expecting that. At that, I suddenly had a few questions to ask Sora.

"Hey Sor?"

"Yeah?" Sora looked at me as we walked.

"When are you planning on telling everyone?" I asked.

"Everyone?" Sora raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah...I mean there is your mom you need to tell. And Kairi and Riku have a right to know too. Kairi is your girlfriend after all. And you do planning on telling Riku you love him, right?" I listed people. He shoved his hands into his jean pockets and stared at the street ahead of us.

"I'm not sure..." He sighed.

"You did realize that you'd have to tell them right?" I asked.

"Yeah, of course I realized that!" Sora replied, looking at me.

"Any thoughts on how to tell them exactly?"

"Not one," He chuckled almost nervously.

"Well you should probably tell your mother first. Kairi should know soon too, because you don't want her to keep thinking that you still want to be with her." I suggested. Sora nodded.

"...Mom." Sora whispered.

"Kairi and Riku can wait a little while longer...maybe?" I asked. Sora nodded and inhaled deeply.

"Roxas, I'm gonna tell Mom tonight." Sora said.

"You sure you're ready? I mean you didn't really give much thought about it." I replied.

"Rox, I've had plenty of time to mull it over in my head. I'm going to have to tell her eventually. I feel ready to tell her. I just needed a push." Sora answered giving me a nervous smile. I patted him gently on the back.

"You want me to go in with you?" I asked.

"No thank you. I want to do this by myself," He said confidently. I nodded understandingly.

"I'll walk you home if you want though." I told him.

"Yeah, I'd appreciate that!" Sora smiled at me, which I returned with a grin. Silence once again filled the air between us as we walked to Sora's house, which was unusual, because Sora loved to talk. But he had a reason for not trying to hold a conversation with me. I figured that my cousin's brain was going crazy as he tried to plan out what to say. There was a deep look of concentration on his face.

--

Getting to his house only minutes later, I could see clearly that Sora was making himself a nervous wreck over this.

"You okay, Sor?" I asked.

"Y-Yeah." He stuttered and nodded. That was an obvious lie.

"You do realize you don't have to do this tonight if you aren't ready, don't you?" I said.

"I do, but I have to. I've had enough time to ready myself; I'm not chickening out now," He replied, his voice strong. He straightened his back out and stood taller. He looked at me and grinned.

"Are you sure you don't want me there with you?" I asked. He nodded, causing his brunet spikes to move with the motion of his head.

"Positive." He replied.

"Okay, so I'll leave you to it?" I said.

"Mhm. And Roxas, thanks again. You're the best." Sora told me as he grasped the doorknob. I smiled and nodded. I turned and walked down the walkway. Before heading back to my own house, I looked back at my cousin, who evidently was still standing outside his house. I shook my head.

"Sora!" I shouted to him. He looked back at me. "You can do it. Take a deep breath and walk in. I have confidence in you!" He grinned, nodding. I watched him as he turned the knob and walk in saying, "Mom I'm home and we need to talk." I considered briefly about staying there and making sure Sora would be alright, but immediately assured myself that he would be fine. I turned back to the street and walked back to my house

I ran all the way back to my house, since after all it was pretty late and I didn't want Mom to worry.

When I burst through the front door, I found Mom sitting at the kitchen table reading a book and drinking what I guessed to be a cup of tea, knowing she didn't drink coffee.

Mom looked up at me, startled at my sudden appearance in the house.

"Roxas..." She said.

"Hey Mom, sorry for coming home so late. I brought Sora home before coming home myself." I explained.

"Is everything okay?" She asked, closing her book. I hesitated, to think of an answer. I took off my jacket to give me some time to think and hung it on the back of the chair. "Roxas?" I looked at her and smiled.

"Yeah, everything's going to be fine, I think." I responded finally.

"That's good." She smiled back. I nodded and walked over to the refrigerator, opening its door and poking my head in. I was very hungry all of a sudden. "Hey Roxas," Mom called, even though I was only a few feet away.

"Yeah?" I replied, still searching for something to eat.

"Don't you think you should be getting to bed?" She said. I decided on an apple and grabbed it from the fruit drawer before kicking the door closed behind me.

"Why?" I questioned, walking back to Mom and taking a bite out of the red apple.

"_Why_? You mean you don't remember?" She replied.

"Uhm...remember what?" I raised an eyebrow at her.

"Augh, Roxas. You start your new job tomorrow morning at 9:30," Mom told me. Realization struck me like a ton of bricks or maybe that was my hand coming in contact with my forehead...either way I remembered immediately as I slammed my partially eaten apple on the table.

"Crap! I totally forgot about it!" I exclaimed.

"I can see that," Mom smiled.

"Ack, I have to get some sleep!" I told her frantically, kissing her on the cheek. "Thank you for reminding me Mom. Goodnight!" I practically ran out of the kitchen and up the stairs. As I hurried up them I faintly heard Mom whine, "You could have thrown away your apple!" Oh right. I forgot about that...I shrugged and went into the bathroom to quickly brush my teeth and wash my face. I decided to take a half a dose of medicine to keep my stuffy nose and cough from interrupting my slumber, though already my cough was subsiding.

I walked out of the bathroom and down the hall to my room, where I closed myself in for the night. I quickly changed into black sweatpants and a white tee-shirt before walking over to my closet to take out my work uniform. Half way there, I turned back, deciding that I was too tired to doing anything but sleep. I flopped onto my bed without getting under the cover. I shut off my overhead light by the sting hanging from it and placed my head on my plush pillow. I yawned and while I waited for sleep to overcome me thought of Sora, Riku, and Kairi, along with random ones of Axel, floated into my mind. So many questions began to form from just thinking about these for people.

_'How's Sora going to tell Kairi and Riku that he's gay?'_

_'How will Kairi take it?'_

_'How will Riku take it?'_

_'Why does Axel want to be friends with me?'_

_'How is Sora going to tell Riku that he's in love with him?'_

_'How is _Riku _going to deal with the fact that his _best friend_ is _in love _with _him?'

Random questions about Axel's hair mixed in with the more serious questions making me more tired then I had been a few minutes before. I yawned again and rolled onto my side, closing my eyes as I did so, pushing those questions out of my mind for the time being. '_They'll be answered in due time...' _I figured in my head. I felt my mind begin to slow down and heard my breathing start to steady itself before I felt myself slip off into peaceful unconsciousness.

I began dreaming almost as soon as I fell asleep, although they were some of the strangest and most random dreams I've ever 'experienced'. They all started off perfectly normal, but then they completely change with some turn in events. Dream-state me wondered at times through out the dreams if it was the medicine I took before bed or if there was something in the apple I had taken bites out of that was causing me to have strange dreams.

One dream started out with me hanging out with three people I didn't recognize, or in fact even know, then all of a sudden I was wearing a black coat and apart of a group that called themselves Organization XIII; I was the thirteenth member. Everyone in that group wore long, black coats exactly like mine and went by a different number. Axel, Demyx, and Zexion were apart of this Organization too. (Zexion was member VI, Axel was member VIII, and Demyx was number IX.) In fact, a lot of the members had similar looks of the students that went to my school. The whole dream plot was too confusing for me to even comprehend.

The current dream Dream-State me was involved in had, of course, started out normal. Axel, Demyx, and I had been having an amusing conversation about ducks for some reason when all of a sudden whenever Axel or Demyx opened his mouth, all that cam out was a weird and very annoying beeping sound. It had been faint at first, but each time either of them opened his mouth the noise got louder. It sounded slightly like an alarm clock, but Dream-State me shrugged it off saying that it couldn't be an alarm clock because Real me had just fallen asleep.

Then randomly a big duck wearing an odd sailor outfit came up to Dream me, took me by the shoulders, and began shaking me as he yelled, "Roxas! Roxas!" over and over in my face.

I shook my head as Dream me struggled out of the duck's grasp.

"Roxas! Roxas!" This time the voice coming out of the duck's mouth was much more feminine. "Rox! Wake up Sweetie!"

I snapped my eyes open instantaneously and stared up into the deep blue of Mom's eyes.

"Mom?" I asked in confusion, still very groggy.

"Roxas get up now or you are going to be late for work!" She told me in a suddenly stern voice after waking me. Mom grabbed my arm gently and pulled me up into a sitting position.

I rubbed my eyes with my free hand and blinked a few times.

"Thanks for waking me Mom. I'll be ready soon," I told her with a big yawn. Mom walked towards my door, but before leaving she turned back.

"Roxas, if you aren't ready by 9:20, I'm going to tell your father to go ahead to work, which means you'll have to find another way there. And being late on your first day of a new job does not sit well with your boss, Rox." Mom advised me.

"Dad? He's here? Why?" I asked.

"He thought he'd stop by and bring his son to work on his first day," she explained.

"Doesn't he have to work?" I questioned.

"Yeah, but he decided to go in later so he could take you." Mom rolled her eyes. She didn't fancy his little antics anymore, which was a small part of why they were divorced. The main reason was because Mom found out Dad was cheating on her and he got this woman, whom I barely know (even though it's been a year and ½), pregnant. The tiny things she used to love, just adds to her annoyance with him now. It's sometimes very hard for her to be civilized around him, but when I'm around I know she tries her very best. I figure, though, she's still broken hearted over that she lets her sour feelings get in the way.

I saw Mom glance at the clock. She clapped saying, "Now come on Rox! Out of bed. You only have 17 minutes left to get ready plus eat breakfast and still have enough time to get to work. You better hurry. I'll be downstairs fixing you breakfast." I nodded and she left.

I jumped out of bed immediately and ran out to the bathroom. I took an unusually quick shower, knowing that I'd pretty much be screwed if I took my usual long one.

After my shower, I walked back into my room to see that my work clothes lying on my bed. Mom must have come up again when I was showering.

I stared at the uniform in disgust. I had to wear either khaki or black pants, a nice collared button-up shirt with the mandatory dark green vest, that had a patch which said "A World of Tales" in script above a globe encircled with tiny books, over it. Along with that I have to wear nice dress shoes with either white or black socks. Then to pull it all together I, along with all the other employees, have to wear a nametag, which wasn't really the worst part.

The whole outfit may not sound bad to you, but you don't have to wear it. I sighed and began to get dressed.

As I adjusted my "Hello! My name is Roxas!" nametag a few minutes later, I looked at my clock. I smiled to myself. I had just enough time for a quick breakfast before I had to go.

I bolted out of my room and met Mom at the bottom of the stairs. She held a surprised look on her face when I ran by her, flashing her a smile. I entered the kitchen, Mom coming in a few seconds after me, to see my father sitting at the table in his old seat, nose stuck in the daily newspaper and one hand curled around a cup of coffee.

I skidded to a stop at my usual seat and said, "Uh hey Dad." I was surprised Mom even let him in. She must be in a very good mood. Dad lowered the paper and gave me his familiar eye-crinkling, heart-warming smile.

"Hey Sport!" He greeted me back. Oh the nicknames I have...

"Uh, Dad, I have time to eat, right?" I asked as I sat down at my normal seat.

"Yeah, of course." He nodded as he sipped his coffee. I began eating my pancakes quickly and Mom filled my glass with Orange Juice and kissed my forehead.

"Eat quickly though Rox or you'll be late," Mom told me. I nodded since my mouth was filled with food.

"Sakura, don't rush him. If he eats any faster the boy will choke," Dad said to her. Mom looked at him.

"If he doesn't hurry he'll be late for his first day of work and that will definitely not please his boss," Mom replied placing her hands on her hips. Mom was the queen of punctuality.

"His boss won't mind if he's two minutes late," Dad said and turned his head to face me. "Rox, take your time, okay?" I began to nod, but Mom stopped me.

"Roxas, keep eating at the pace you have been. I want you to be punctual to impress your boss," Mom told me and then turned to Dad again. "Ryo stop sending Roxas the wrong idea that being late is acceptable!!"

"What?! I'm not giving him the 'wrong idea'! I'm just watching out for my son's safety. I'd prefer him living rather then dead!" Dad replied, an edge in his tone now. Mom opened her mouth to counter with her reply, but I cut her off by the loud scrapping of my chair as I pushed it away from the table and practically shouted, "Okay! I'm done! Let me just go brush my teeth and I'll be ready to go!" as I stood up. Mom and Dad looked at me and they both smiled. Dad stood up and cleared his throat.

"I'll wait in the car for you Rox," he said and left. I walked out of the kitchen and up the stairs to the bathroom, where I brushed my teeth quickly and washed my face again. Returning to the kitchen I walked over to Mom and kissed her on the cheek.

"Thanks for the breakfast Mom. It was very good." I smiled.

"You're welcome Roxas."

"I'll be heading off now. So I'll see you at 2 o'clock, okay?" I said. She nodded.

"Certainly Roxas. Good luck." Mom gave me a hug and ruffled my naturally messy hair.

"Thanks." Mom waved to be and I walked out of the door. I got into Dad's car silently and buckled up.

Dad backed out of the driveway and drove away from my house as soon as he heard the click of my buckle.

The ride to work was quiet except for the soft music playing from the radio. It stayed that way until we were 6 minutes away from the bookstore I now worked at.

"Hey Rox, sorry about earlier," Dad apologized.

"It's okay." I replied shrugging. I was used to it by now.

"Not really. We shouldn't get into fights like that. Especially around you. It's just your mother...I try to be civilized around her but she just doesn't want to play that way..." I stared at him.

"Dad, you broke her heart. And she's still sore about it. You didn't actually think that she'd recover so quickly and easily, did you?" I asked, coming to Mom's defense.

"Well...it did pass through my mind. It's been a year and a ½ since it happened. I thought she'd forgive me by now." _'You're kidding, right?'_ I shook my head.

"Dad, she'll never forgive you for what you did to her. And quite frankly, I wouldn't either if I were her." I told him, turning my head to stare out the window. "Mom is strong, but this really did have an affect her. She's trying her hardest to let the hurt she is feeling go, but it won't leave her alone. It hangs over her head, I know it. I see her sometimes, when her guard is down, with a solemn look on her face, even if it's just for a second that it's there, it is still there. What you did to her still looms over her to this day making it impossible to forget and forgive." I rested my head on the window after I finished talking. I saw Dad's reflection in the grass and he seemed to be thinking about what I just said. The 2 minutes we had left until we got to the bookstore were silent ones. Neither of us talked to each other, nor did we look at on another. The silence became a little too awkward for me, but fortunately when that happened we turned onto the street where A World of Tales resided.

"Here we are Roxas." Dad announced, breaking the silence.

"Thanks Dad. I appreciate the ride." I told him as I began to get out of the car.

"You're welcome." He replied, nodding. "Have a good first day." He managed to give me a weak smile as I shut the car door and walked over to the sidewalk. Dad waved to me before he drove off. I looked at my watch. I had barely two minutes to get myself into the store before I was officially late.

I turned to face the bookstore. I looked the front over and took a deep breath, and then slowly exhaled. The building, though it was small, was a little intimidating.

"Let's go Roxas. Everything will be great! Stay cool! Think of the positive things that this job offers. List them in order if how beneficial they are!" I pep-talked myself. Making lists always seems to calm me down when I am nervous and giving myself little talks helps too. Yes, I am a strange boy. "Aaaandd walk!" I remained unmoving on the sidewalk after saying that. _'Don't be nervous! Come on: left, right, left, right.' _My feet started moving as I instructed. _'There you go!' _I made my way to the door and opened it, causing the little bell hooked up to it to ring (A/N: God, I hate those things. They are so annoying.), which in turn startled me out of my thoughts. I heard a loud chuckle come from somewhere near me and I looked over at the register to see a short man with a long white beard, who was also oddly dressed, peering at me.

"You must be Roxas." He said, noticing my vest, and walked around the counter over to me. I nodded and looked around the inside of the building. And let me tell you, the outside was definitely deceiving. From the outside, A World of Tales seemed like it would fit only a few shelves of books, but once you step in it's like you are in a completely different place! Tall shelves, that you'd need ladders to reach the top, filled the building. Books filled up every space on those shelves. Some of the walls were even lined with books of every size and color cover. It was truly...

"Amazing, isn't it?" The man asked, finishing my thoughts, as he now stood beside me. I jumped, startled once again by his sudden appearance, but quickly regained my composure. I nodded, again, in response. He held out his hand to me and said, "I'm Merlin, the owner of the bookstore and your new boss. Welcome to A World of Tales!" I looked at his thin hand and took it hesitantly. As we shook hands, I could see him studying me closely. "Not much of a talker, huh?"

"Sorry sir. I'm just nervous. It's my first job and my first day at said job." I told him. Merlin nodded.

"Call me Merlin, Roxas. And it's fine to be nervous. It's understandable. It won't last long though. The co-workers here are very friendly and so are the customers. They'll make you feel at home in due time." Merlin assured me. I nodded, only feeling slightly better then before. "Okay, well Roxas, we need to start restocking the shelves. My other employees, who came at 9:00, were sent into the backroom, where you'll find everything you need to start. Now that I think about it, I haven't seen them since. So when you go back there could you make sure everything is okay? And-"Merlin was suddenly interrupted by a loud shriek that sounded like a mixture between a guy's voice and a girl's voice and an even louder thud. A very annoyed, yet very familiar, voice also came from the back saying, "Now look what you've done!" Merlin sighed in exasperation and finished, "Maybe you could help them clean up whatever mess they just made?"

"Sure," I answered and made my way to the backroom as I imagined what sort of mess awaited my help. I pushed open the door and was instantly greeted by an enormous pile of books on the floor and two very familiar and unexpected faces.

**--**

**OOOOH!** Who are Roxas' fellow employees?? It's kind of obvious...hah, well I shouldn't really say that since I know who they are. Hmm...I thought Merlin would be a good bookstore owner. How 'bout you? Or maybe I a the only one who thinks that XD -shrugs-

Anywhoo..I hope you liked it and weren't disappointed with it. I rather liked the last part of the chapter better...hmm...Oh wells! What matters too is if you, the readers, enjoyed it! I hope soo!

Reviews make the updating faster, especially now since I don't have to worry about silly reports to do (thanks to a certain private high school I attend ). That's what was really slowing me down. But now, that they are out of the way I have plenty of time to write and I am super happy! I've already started the next chapter...Sooo...yeah that's about it!

Reviews make my ideas come to me faster! SO REVIEW!


	7. A Day at A World of Tales

**Author's Note: Here is chapter 6! I hope you like it! I think these chapters are getting longer...  
I was thinking about splitting this one up, but eh, whatever. I may end up splitting later  
chapters up if they are wicked long. Or not. I have yet to decide that XD  
Pairings: AkuRoku & SoRi  
Disclaimer: ...no own.**

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* * *

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Chapter 6.

"...Zexion?" I blinked when I saw the familiar face and blue-silver hair of the upperclassmen.

"Hello Roxas." The teen addressed greeted me. I moved my gaze to the redhead who was standing over the pile, looking down at it.

"And...Axel?" I widened my blue eyes in surprise. Axel turned his head to look at me and smiled instantly.

"Roxas! So you're the new employee?" He asked, even though the answer was pretty obvious by my standing there. I nodded as he sauntered over to me. He wrapped his arm around my shoulders and pulled me to his side. "Welcome aboard! Maybe now this place won't be so boring!" Axel peered down at me with a grin on his face. My blue eyes met his piercing green ones for a few seconds until I looked away when I felt awkward under his gaze. I placed my gaze on all the books in a heap on the floor.

"What happened here?" I asked gesturing to the books. Axel took his arms away and walked over to the pile again while Zexion stood up from his chair and said, "Demyx happened, that's what." I raised an eyebrow at this statement.

"Demyx works here too?" I questioned.

"Yeah, though sometimes it would be better if he didn't. He can be so clumsy," Zexion told me with a roll of his eyes.

"Hey!" A muffled voice came from somewhere in the room. "I can still hear you Zexy!" I looked around us for the source of the voice and my eyes fell on the book pile Axel was still staring at with an amused look on his face.

"Is Demyx under...?" I trailed off when both Axel and Zexion nodded, already knowing what I was going to ask.

"Yeah, he's under there alright," Zexion nodded. I looked at both of them questioningly. Axel chuckled and looked at me.

"Mr. Clumsy here decided he would start at the very top shelf and bring down as many books as he could in one trip. So he had a few good sized boxes stacked on top of each other and he began his climb down the ladder. But a few of the boxes began to slide around as he went down and he ended up losing his balance and falling off the ladder, onto the floor. Also because his luck is so terrible, the boxes he had were open from Merlin checking the order, so all the books fell on top of him when they fell out; thus creating this heap with Demyx hidden beneath it." Axel offered the explanation.

"Is he okay?" I asked walking over to Axel.

"Yeah, I'm good except for the part where I am losing oxygen. Buuut other then that, I'm great! Thanks for your concern though Roxas," Demyx's muffled voice came from the books with a thick sarcastic tone. Axel laughed.

"Well stop breathing and you won't waste whatever is left of that air," Axel told him with a smirk.

"Axel," I said sternly. Axel's smirk vanished off his face as quickly as it appeared at the sound of my tone. "We have to help him or he may really suffocate." I crouched down and began lifting the books off the pile and placing them behind me. Axel crouched down beside me and joined in the moving of the books.

Without stopping or looking up I called, "Zexion, we could use your help too." I heard a small sigh come from behind me and then the sound of footsteps coming closer before Zexion appeared on the other side of me and began moving books.

As we worked to unburied Demyx (there were a ton of books) I asked Axel, "Why are you working at a bookstore? I thought you didn't read?"

"He still doesn't," Demyx answered before the redhead could. Axel rolled his eyes as he lifted and dropped a rather large book from the pile next to him.

"Thank you Demyx, but I think I can answer for myself," Axel said.

"Right, sorry." Demyx apologized, becoming quiet.

"I don't read, that is still true, but this is the only place that would hire all 3 'suspicious' looking teenagers without any thoughts of the consequences or problems that may occur in the future," Axel explained. I nodded as I took a few more books away from the pile that was now decreasing in size.

"I can understand why other employers didn't hire you or Demyx," I stated. "But why not Zexion?" I looked up in question at a very hurt looking Axel.

"Ouch, that hurts Roxy." He winced for effect.

"Yeah! We aren't _that_ suspicious looking!" Demyx shouted.

"Well Demyx, _you_ don't fit the 'suspicious' part, but you are as clumsy as hell! That alone would have employers turning you away. Axel, now, you _do _fit the 'suspicious looking' characteristic, with your tattoos, and-" Axel interrupted me before I could continue.

"And what is wrong with my tattoos?" He asked touching one of his teardrop shaped tattoos. "I don't think they look suspicious! Quite frankly, I think I look rather sexy." Zexion and Demyx groaned. I smacked my forehead with my palm and shook my head.

"God Axel, you are so conceited!" Demyx yelled suddenly. Without a word, Axel reached over and grabbed a particularly large and heavy book and then dropped it back on the pile, but this time it fell on the spot where we guessed Demyx's face would be once we uncovered it. Another groan was heard, but this time it was one of pain.

"Damn you Axel! I know it was you! I'm going to get you for that!" The blond yelled again angrily.

"Only if you get out before you suffocate!" Axel replied in a sing-song voice before looking at me again. "Anyways, do you think my tattoos are sexy Roxy?" I raised an eyebrow at him. Beside me Zexion whispered, "Think carefully about your answer Roxas." He lifted a book and ended up revealing Demyx's leg.

"Err...Yes?" I figured saying that they were sexy would end the conversation quickly and at the same time make him happy. Hopefully he doesn't take it the wrong way though...

Axel's face brightened up considerably and he grinned.

"Really?" Axel smirked. "Roxy thinks I'm sexy! Roxy thinks I'm sexy! Roxy thinks-" I slapped a hand hard over his mouth.

"That's not what I said! Stop twisting my words." I told him.

"You should have thought more about your answer..." Zexion mumbled. I rolled my eyes at him and took my hand away from his mouth.

"Soo...do you think I'm sexy, Roxas?" He asked slyly. I considered giving him an answer, but then figuring he'd twist that too, I opted to ignore him completely and continue with unburying Demyx.

When Axel figured out that I wasn't going to answer him, he too went back to work, dropping our conversation completely. A few minutes of silence passed before all three of us heard footsteps come closer to the backroom and a new person enter.

"Boys are we almost done here? It's almost time to open and we need to start stocking the-oh dear. What on earth happened here?" All 3 of us looked back to see Merlin standing behind us, observing the situation. "Wait, here's a better question: do I want to know what happened?" Zexion, Axel and I exchanged glances before looking back at our boss, shaking our heads no. Merlin sighed and shook his head.

"Anyways, I need you guys to speed it up back here so we are ready for customers."

"...Not like anyone ever comes," Axel mumbled to me and Zexion. I snickered before turning my attention back to Merlin.

"We'll be out soon. We just have to finish...cleaning up." Zexion told Merlin as he stacked books. Out of the three of us, he was the only one still working on unburying the blond.

"Right, well you three get on that." Merlin nodded, and then before he turned away he asked, "Where's Demyx?"

"Uh...bathroom." Axel fibbed. I rolled my eyes.

"He's under the pile." I pointed to the books. Merlin shook his head with a slight smile and left, not wanting to question it any further.

"Okay you guys, we have to hurry!" I urged and all three of us worked even faster then before.

About 5 minutes later, Demyx was uncovered. Zexion offered him his hand, which the blond gratefully accepted, and was pulled onto his feet by the sliver-blue haired teen.

"Thanks for finally unburying me," Demyx said with a smile.

"No problem." I replied and started picking the books up off the floor. "Come on you guys; let's go bring 'em out there." My three co-workers nodded and started helping me clean up. I noticed Demyx pick up a large book and nonchalantly walked over to Axel, who had his back turned.

"Hey Axel...?" Demyx said innocently. Axel turned around, unsuspectingly, saying, "Yeah..Demyx?" The next thing that was heard in the backroom was a loud 'thwap!"

"Damn it Demyx! What the hell was that for?!" Axel shouted, rubbing his arm and glaring at his friend. Demyx threw him a playful and triumphant smirk.

"That's what you get for dropping that book on my face!" Demyx stuck out his tongue and turned away, walking back to Zexion where he was arranging the books he had in alphabetical order. Axel glared harder at his co-worker slash friend. I chuckled and shook my head. Axel heard my laughter and looked over at me.

"Roxy! Dem hurt me!" He whined childishly.

"Don't be a baby." I replied picking up another book.

"Wow, you're heartless!" Axel poked me. I swatted his hand away.

"Deal with it." I grinned. Axel grinned back at me before heading out the main part of the store to put his books on the shelves. I followed after him with my own armful of books.

I walked through the store, curiosity streaming through my body. Damn this place is HUGE. I so wanted to just drop all these books and explore the place, but I knew I couldn't slack off on my first day. That would not be good. Instead, as I resisted my urge to do some adventuring, I began looking for the travel section, but it was proving to be difficult to find. I stood in the middle of one aisle looking around for the sign that said "Travel" when Demyx popped up next to me, scaring the crap out of me. Not literally of course.

"Hey Rox!" He exclaimed.

"Hello Demyx." I replied.

"What'cha doing?" The blond asked.

"Putting books away. You should be too." I advised. Demyx shrugged.

"I already did." He said, I looked at him, eyes wide and jaw dropped to the ground. How could he have done that so fast?

"How?!"

"My aunt owns a small library and I used to have to work there in the summer; so I kind of know how things work." Demyx explained.

"Oh." I mouthed. He nodded vigorously.

"So, you want any help?" He asked.

"Yeah sure. Can you tell me where the travel section is?"

"Of course. You go down this aisle, take a left passed the lounging area, and you'll see all the travel books in between the bathroom and the mechanics section." He instructed.

"Thanks!" I said with a smile. Demyx nodded as he said, "No problem Rox. If you need anymore help just ask, okay?"

"Yupp!" I replied and rushed off. I followed Demyx's simple directions to the travel section and got 'rid' of the books for that section before walking off to put away the last of the books in my arms. As I walked over to the aspiring magician section, my cell phone in my pocket started vibrating. I accidentally forgot to turn it off. I placed my books on a nearby table and shoved my hand into my pocket, bringing out my phone.

"Hello?" I whispered after bringing it to my ear.

"Hi Roxas!" It was Sora. He sounded particularly happy.

"Oh, hey Sora. Listen I can't really talk right now. I'm at work and I'm not really supposed to be on the phone," I told him.

"Oh. I just wanted to know if we could meet up later to talk?" " He grinned.

"Uh, yeah sure. Call me after work. I get off at 2."

"That works for me!" Sora exclaimed. "I'll talk to you later then!" And he hung up.

"That was the shortest conversation I've ever had with him." I shook my head.

"Talking to yourself Roxy?" Axel popped up next to me. I jumped a visible 3 feet and Axel chuckled.

"Jesus, what's with people scaring me today?!" I asked.

"Sorry, Rox. Didn't mean to scare you," he grinned.

"Yeah yeah." I said dismissively, putting my cell phone in my pocket and picking up the last of my books. "What do you need from me?"

"Nothing. Merlin just wanted me to find you and tell you that we'll be opening in 2 minutes." Axel told me. I nodded my understanding. Axel started to walk off, but before he turned the corner, he looked back at me. "Hey Roxas?"

"Yeah?" I asked, shifting the weight of the books in my arms, raising an eyebrow.

"What are you doing after work?" He questioned.

"Well, my cousin needed to talk to me about something, so probably meeting him somewhere later... Why do you ask?" I wondered.

"Oh well, Zexion, Dem, and I are going to have lunch after work. Would you want to come with us?"

"Uh, sure I guess. I can talk to Sora afterward I suppose." When I said that, Axel grinned broadly, brightening his face up considerably.

"Great!" He exclaimed happily and walked off. I shook my head at his enthusiasm and set off to finally put the last of the books away.

After I was done with that, I walked back to the front of the store where Axel and Zexion stood at registers. Merlin opened the doors and flipped the sign from 'closed' to 'open'. He turned to us with a smile.

"Be alert everyone. Saturdays are always our busiest days." He told us. Lovely. I went to the back room to see Demyx grabbing some more books off a shelf. He turned around slowly as he balanced books in his arms.

"Hey, Dem. Want some help?" I asked, rushing over to him to grab books off of his pile.

"Heh, thanks!" He said appreciatively.

"No problem. Next time don't take so many. You don't want to have to be unburied again, do you?" I asked.

"No I guess not." The blond chuckled as he walked passed me once I had taken some book off his hands. We both exited the backroom and went back to stocking the bookshelves. Faintly I heard the tinkling of the door's little bell in the front while I was on opposite end of the store.

I shoved the books in their spots before returning once again to the registers to see Demyx talking animatedly to...Riku? What the hell was he doing here?

Riku looked over at him suddenly and nodded towards me.

"What's he doing here?" I heard him say. I walked up to him.

"_I_ happen to work here, Riku." I told him matter-of-factly.

"You have a job?" He scoffed. I pointed to my vest. Duh. Ass. How could Sora be in love with this kid? It just didn't work!

"What do you want Riku? Let one of us help you so you can leave." I said, glowering.

"Nah, I'm just here to browse." Riku replied and sauntered off. I glared after him.

"Wow that was tense." Demyx widened his eyes.

"He's my cousin's best friend." I rolled my blue eyes. "He's a total ass to me."

"Oh...gotcha. That's weird though 'cause he's totally nice to us." The blond shrugged.

"Well, he just hates me for some reason beyond my comprehension. Not that I really care if I was friends with that egotistical asshole."

"Geez. That's a little harsh there Roxy." Axel butted in.

"Not if you've known him as I long as I have." I replied hotly. "Right," I heard him mumble. I rolled my eyes and walked off to go finish stocking shelves. What a tedious job I have. I sighed. As I shoved "Magic for Dummies" into its rightful place, Riku walked up and watched me. I tried my best to ignore him, but his ego seemed to have an air to it and it wafted into my personal space bubble. I glanced over at him with a bored look on my face.

"What do you want Riku?" I asked already annoyed with him.

"Aren't employees supposed to be nice to the customers?" Riku asked. "That wasn't very nice..."

"Sorry Riku but you don't deserve my nice attitude." I replied, shoving another book in its place.

"Tsk, tsk Roxas. If you aren't nice I may have to complain to your boss." Riku crossed his arms.

"Tattle-tail," I mumbled under my breath.

"What was that shortie?" The silver-haired teenager beside me leaned in to hear what I said. Please tell me he's not one of the "nice" customers Merlin was talking about! I turned to him with a fake cheery smile and said, "Nothing Riku. I'm sorry for my behavior."

"That's more like it," Riku nodded. I turned back to my previous job with a roll of my eyes. I hoped with all my might that he was done and would walk away, but instead he leaned his body on the bookcase next to me and said, "Now Roxas, I need some help finding a book."

"Gods, kill me now." I whispered to the books before turning my head to Riku with a fake smile. "What book would that be?" He tapped his chin with his finger.

"That's the thing; I don't have an exact book in mind. I need your help to find one," he then said.

"Well, then can't you ask one of the others to help you. As you can see, I am a little busy so I can't go around the entire building just to find a book that strikes your fancy," I replied.

"But I asked you. I want _your_ help. Not anyone else." Riku poked my forehead. He was getting on my nerves with every word that came out of his mouth. _'Deep breath Roxas. Just pick out a book and get him out of here.'_ I sighed to calm myself down and counted to ten when that didn't work.

"Okay Riku. I'll help you." I agreed. I dropped the books I was unable to give homes to on the shelves on a table and walked off to a shelf in a huff. Riku followed behind me with a visible smirk on his features. I looked over the titles and grabbed one off the shelf. I shoved it in Riku's hands. "There you go. Pay up front. Have a nice life." I hurriedly said and began to walk off.

"Not so fast oh so short one. I've already read this." I groaned. _'Of course you have.' _I walked back and snatched the book from him and shoved it back in its place. I led him to a different section and picked out another book. Of course it didn't strike his fancy so I began my search again.

After about ten minutes of picking out books, having Riku reply with a 'Nah' or an 'I've already read it', placing it back where I had gotten it, and going off to find a new one to offer to him, Riku finally yawned and said, "Eh...I don't feel like getting a book anymore." He sauntered off to the front to say goodbye to my co-workers. Once I heard the tinkling of the bell signaling his departure, I slammed my head against the nearest bookshelf. All that wasted time! I seriously hate that kid.

"You probably shouldn't do that. Ya might get hurt." Axel walked over to me as I leaned my head against the books. "Did he torture you that badly?" I didn't answer him. The answer was obvious in my previous action. Axel chuckled and walked off.

--

The rest of my first day went by uneventfully. I was kept very busy, either helping customers or stocking the shelves, so nothing horribly bad happened to make it remotely eventful. Throughout my day, though, Demyx and Axel took much joy in coming up from behind and scaring me, sometimes making me drop the things I held in my arms. Then they would just walk away chuckling, not even bothering to help me pick the stuff up. I guess now that I am Axel's friend instead of a stranger in the hall way, he didn't think it was necessary to help me out. I didn't really mind if Demyx helped or not because I had this feeling he'd make it worse, whatever he did.

At 1:45, I took two minutes to call Mom to tell her to not bother picking me up since I was going to lunch with a few of my fellow employees. I clocked out before walking out of the backroom. I'm sure Merlin wouldn't mind, since it was only a few minutes until we had to leave anyways. (Calls to Mom always take longer then planned. When I want to make a two minute call it turned in to 5 minutes with her,) When I returned to the counter I saw Axel, Demyx and Zexion, already clocked out I guessed, conversing with three girls a few years older then myself. Demyx looked over at me and waved me over. I walked over to him and stood uneasily between him and Axel.

"Who's the cutie?" The blonde girl of the group asked, pointedly staring at me.

"This is Roxas." Axel introduced me, slinging an arm around my shoulders. He tends to do that a lot with me...

"It was his first day working here." Demyx added. Two out of the three girls nodded. Demyx smiled at me and said, "Roxas, This Rikku," -he pointed to the blonde-"Yuna," -he turned his finger to the only brunette of the three- "And Paine." -lastly he pointed to the tough looking one with grayish hair.

"We also work here!" Rikku told me with a grin. I nodded, not really sure what to say to that.

"Well, we'll be seeing you three later. Dem, Zex, Roxy, and I have a lunch date!" Axel said, ending their conversation.

"'Kay. Seeya later!" Rikku waved.

"Bye you guys!" Yuna said. Paine offered a nod as we started walking away. We passed Merlin on the way out and waved goodbye. Axel, Demyx and Zexion told him they'd see him Monday after school. Ugh work on a school day. Good thing I don't have to do that!

As soon as we walked out all four of us immediately tore off (not literally, of course) our green vests and untucked our shirts from our pants. Demyx pulled on a sweatshirt while Zexion and Axel each pulled on a coat of some type; Axel wore the coat he had wrapped around me that night he found me at the beach and Zexion wore a black pea coat. I had on a wind-breaker so thank the gods that it wasn't too chilly.

"Where are we going to eat?" Demyx asked as we stood out in front of the bookstore. I shrugged, not really caring while Zexion, Demyx, and Axel took a few moments to think about our options.

"What about Delectable Delights?" Demyx then offered.

"Dem, that's a bakery." Axel pointed out.

"So?"

"You can't get substantial food at a bakery. All those shops have are sugary things and bread. Not exactly lunch food, you know." Zexion told him. Demyx sighed and started thinking again.

"We could just get something at the fast food restaurant down the street..." I suggested. Zexion wrinkled his nose, disgusted by the mere thought of that place, but Demyx and Axel nodded their agreement. 2 against 1. They win. Like I said, I didn't really care. It was only a suggestion on my part.

We walked leisurely down the street towards the fast food restaurant while Axel and Demyx chatted about random topics (pretty much whatever popped into their heads I think), Zexion flipped through the pages of a book, and I listened to the music coming from my iPod. The sudden vibrating of my cell phone in my pocket brought me out of the daze my music had put me in and I took off my headphones to place the cellular device to my ear without checking the caller ID.

"Hello?" I greeted whoever was on the other line.

_"Hey Roxas!"_ It was Sora again.

"Hi Sor, what's up?" I asked.

_"You're off work now right?"_ He asked.

"Yeah, why?" I quirked an eyebrow up.

_"You said that we could meet up after and talk."_ Crapola. I did say that didn't I? I sighed. What was I to do now? I can't just blow off Sora after I told him we'd talk after work. But I if I go see him, then I'd be blowing off Axel, Demyx, and Zexion. Though I'd already promised my time to Sora. Maybe they would understand if I told them that I'd go with them to lunch next time. I had to make my decision fast, Sora wasn't the patient type. _"Roxas?"_ Once again I sighed before saying, "Okay where do you want to meet?" Axel looked at me with a curious expression when I said this while Demyx kept talking to him as if the redhead was still listening.

_"The dock like last night? If that works..." _Sora suggested.

"Yeah, give me a few minutes to get there okay?" I asked.

_Yupp. Seeya!" _Sora said and hung up on me. I shoved the phone back in my pocket and looked over at my co-workers to see two out of the three older teens looking at me.

"What's up Roxas?" Axel asked.

"Sorry you guys, but I can't go to lunch with you. I promised Sora that we'd talk after I left work." I explained.

"Can't you grab something quick with us?" Demyx questioned. I shook my head.

"No sorry, I have to get to the dock right away. He's waiting. I'll go with you next time okay?" I replied. Demyx nodded with a smile, but Axel looked kind of hurt, though only for a split second, before he covered it up with his usual grin.

"Yeah, that's fine. Next time! I'll hold you to it, so no backing out." He said. I nodded with my own smile before taking off back down the way we had just come. I felt really bad for just leaving them, but Sora probably had something to tell me, something important.

--

6 minutes later I arrived at the dock, out of breath and a little sweaty, to see Sora laying on his back with his feet dangling over the ledge of the dock as he took in the sun. I walked up to him and sat next to him.

"So what'd you need to talk about Sor?" I asked after I took a minute or two to catch my breath. I looked at him and he cracked a blue eye open to look at me. He closed it a few seconds later as he yawned before sitting up and stretching.

"Well I talked to my mom last night about...ya'know," He said. I nodded, knowing what he was talking about.

"And...?" I asked eager to hear how my aunt took his coming out. I hoped she took it well.

"And how she took it was...unexpected." He told me, scratching his head. Uh oh...

"Good unexpected or bad?" I questioned. My face must have held a worried expression because when Sora looked at me he smiled.

"Good unexpected, Rox. Don't worry. She's fine with it, as we'd hoped, but she's worried."

"Worried about what?" I furrowed my eyebrows.

"Well, she's worried that the others won't take it well..." He said hesitantly.

"'Others'? Who exactly?"

"Riku and Kairi for starters. She thinks they'll be upset or something. I don't actually know. I kind of wasn't concentrating on what she had been saying after she said, 'Sora whatever you choose is fine with me. And whoever makes you happy, whether that person is a boy or girl, makes me happy too'. I was just relieved she didn't disown me or something." He said staring out into the ocean.

"Of course she wouldn't disown you Sora. You're her son." I shook my head. He looked back at me with a serious expression.

"I've heard of people being disowned from their families after coming out to them, so it was something I had to worry about, since it isn't unheard of." Sora said quietly.

"Sora, your mother would never do that. She's too kind to-" I was cut off by my cousin.

"Roxas, it doesn't even matter anymore. It's over and done with. She didn't disown me and I'm grateful, so you can stop trying to convince me that she wouldn't in the first place." He said in a huff. I sighed and nodded. Sorry for trying to help...

"Anyways, she was worried specifically about Riku or Kairi. And now she's got me worrying about it too. What if they, like, hate me or something?" He asked. I didn't say anything since I wasn't sure if I should. He might snap at me again. Sora looked over at me and snickered at the face I was making as I tried to keep my comments to myself. "Roxas, I could use some convincing now..." He cracked a smile at me. I let out a breath.

"Okay, well don't worry about them. They are your best friends. They won't _disown _you either." I grinned. "They are definitely not going to hate you. If they react the way your mom did, then they'll just want you to be happy too." I wasn't really sure what else to tell him. His mom, my aunt, was family and I knew how she'd react to certain things, but Riku and Kairi could be unpredictable sometimes so it was hard to know exactly how they would take to certain information. But I did have this feeling that they wouldn't care, well they wouldn't after Kairi got over the fact that Sora was leaving her because of his love for Riku and Riku found out that he was the one Sora was in love with and who helped him, unknowingly, figure out he was gay...

Who knows, though, maybe Kairi would help Sora get together with Riku, that is if Riku felt the same.

Of course I wasn't going to say anything about that to Sora. It might get his hopes up, not that I don't have confidence that both of his friends would be fine about his choice. I just don't want to get him excited about the slim chance Kairi would help him out. It may be too awkward for her.

Sora was staring at me when I came out of my thoughts.

"Roxas, what are you thinking about?" He asked curiously. I blinked at him.

"Oh, nothing. Just stuff." I shrugged. He raised an eyebrow but let it go, for now.

"I'm thinking about telling Kairi Monday." He said suddenly.

"Really? At school?" I asked.

"Yeah. I want to tell her as soon as possible. But still give myself a day to get ready for her reaction." He replied. I nodded.

"Very responsible of you Sor." I smiled.

"Yeah, well like you said, I shouldn't lead her on and stuff. I feel really bad already. I hope she's won't be upset." He thoughtfully said.

"Well of course she's going to be upset."

"I know, I know. I mean I just hope she's going to be able to get over it and forgive me." He sighed.

"Well, I'm sure she will..." I trailed off. "Hey Sora?"

"Yeah?" He answered looking up from the dock where he had been scratching away at the sand on it.

"Why do you come to me with your problems?" Wow, that came out harsh and I didn't even mean for it be. It was just supposed to be a question. I saw the hurt look on his face and quickly rephrased it, "I mean you have a ton of other people to go to yet you come to me. Why?" He shrugged.

"I guess it's because you are family and my closest friend so I feel comfortable talking to you about stuff. Besides you have the best advice." He shrugged again. I nodded and looked at the waves rolling in. Don't I feel special? I'm his _closest _friend. In your face Riku. A smug smile came across my face and I didn't even realize it until Sora gave me another curious look.

"Rox, what are you smiling at?" He asked. I shook my head and looked at him.

"Huh? ...Oh nothing. Sorry."

"S'okay." He replied and hopped to his feet. I followed his lead without hopping. We both stretch as if we hadn't been moving for hours as Sora said, "You'll be at school Monday right?"

"Should be. My cold's already getting better. I haven't coughed all day. My nose is just a little runny..."

"Okay, I don't need to know the specifics." Sora cut me off and laughed.

"Sorry." I said, though it wasn't very sincere. "Well I should be getting home. I have a lot of homework to finish." I sighed. Homework is awful.

"Okay, good luck with all of that." He said sincerely. He waved to me and walked towards a different dock where his little canoe was tied up; he was most likely heading to the small island he, Riku, and Kairi usually hang out on.

I made my way, very slowly might I add, to my house where a huge crap load of homework waited for me.

* * *

**Hope you enjoyed reading it! I wonder why I've decided to make Riku act kinda like a jerk...I mean I have nothing  
against him...I don't know XD  
I know it may seem like I've forgotten all about the AkuRoku stuff, but fear not! It is coming up soon!  
I just needed to get this stuff out of the way.  
AkuRoku will come in after the next chapter, if I am planning my stuff out right.  
So, stay tune for the next chapters!  
(Don't forget to review!)  
Oh! And please give some love to my two other fics: 'Forget Me Not' and 'Excuse Me, but Have We Met?'!  
The second one, especially!  
Thank yous!**


	8. Easily Persuaded

**Author's Note: Eh...you know what? I don't feel like taking the time to split up the chapters  
so they'll just have to stay uber long.  
After this chapter you'll have more AkuRoku to look forward to. _Finally_, I know!  
SoRi will come in much much later though, so AkuRoku will have to  
suffice for now! :D  
Oh and I threw in a little bit of Sora's POV just for the heck of it!  
Anyways, enjoy! And thanks to all that read and reviewed!****  
Pairings: AkuRoku & SoRi  
Disclaimer: Not even in my dreams will I own the wonderful creation that is Kingdom Hearts  
**

* * *

Chapter 7.

When I walked onto the school grounds, my eyes fell on a very nervous looking Sora. Knowing exactly what he was nervous about I walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. He looked over at me as he wrung the fingers on his left hand with his right and repeated that action on his right only seconds later. Wow he really was nervous. He flashed me a quick, but weak smile.

"Hey Rox," his voice cracked slightly.

"How's it going Sora?"

"Ha, I've been better," he replied.

"Have you thought about what you are going to tell Kairi?" I asked.

"Yeah, I thought about it a lot yesterday and I'm planning on just telling her straight out. I'm not going to bother to sugar-coat it or anything." Sora told me.

"You sure you can do that?"

"I'm going to try," he said. I nodded.

"Come on Sora; let's go find her so you can get it over with, okay?" It was his turn to nod. I had to practically drag him into the school, though, since his feet decided to stop working as we got closer to the building.

Turns out, though, we didn't have to search far for the auburn-haired girl. She actually found us. We barely stepped into the main hallway when she bounded up to us with an excited look on her face.

"Hey Sor," she greeted him first with a soft kiss on the lips. I immediately saw Sora's body stiffen, though Kairi was oblivious to this. I sighed, knowing that his previous plans to tell Kairi were slowly being washed down the drain.

"H-hey Kai." Sora barely said.

"Hi Rox, how are you feeling?" She asked sincerely.

"I'm much better, thanks Kairi." I replied. She smiled at me before turning her blue eyes back to her boyfriend.

"Sora! Guess what _just_happened!" Kairi exclaimed. I widened my eyes at her energy. Something big must have happened to make Kairi act like this. She wasn't normally so…hyper.

"What just happened, Kai?" He asked, his voice not as shaky as before, now that he was becoming more comfortable. Kairi gripped his hand and tugged him through the crowd saying, "It's too exciting for words! You have to see it for yourself!" I briskly walked after them, curious to see what Kairi was so excited about too. Kairi led us over to where her locker resided. Riku and Naminé were standing there, most likely waiting for Kairi and Sora, holding…hands?! I squinted at them and saw that they were indeed holding hands. Oh gods, is Sora seeing this? I rushed to his side as we stopped in front of them to see him trying to fight back a horrified look.

"Sora isn't it wonderful? Riku and Naminé are a couple now! Our two best friends finally together! Sora, aren't you happy for them?" She asked, oblivious to the sorrowful look that had taken over his usually happy features. "Sora?" She snapped her fingers in front of his face as he stared at Riku and Naminé's intertwined fingers. I nudged him in the ribs hard enough to break him out of his trance, but gentle enough that it wouldn't cause him pain. Sora blinked a few times before giving a go at smiling at them. It looked more like he was cringing at something, but everyone, except me, was oblivious to it.

"I'm very happy for you two. It's about time you got a girlfriend, Riku," he weakly teased. Riku smirked at him and punched him in the shoulder while Naminé smiled sweetly at them. Kairi hugged Naminé happily before grasping Sora's hand in hers. It was so painful for me to watch. Sora was trying his hardest to put up a happy façade so they wouldn't realize the hurt he felt. I was grateful when Axel sauntered over to me, so I could turn my attention to something more…cheerful.

"Hey Roxy!" He greeted me with a grin. I grinned back. It was starting to come so natural to me and I've only known him for a few days. I've never grinned so much before in my life, but now I always feel at least a small smile grow on my face when ever I was around him. Why was that I wonder? I shrugged it away, not caring to give it much thought, and met him halfway. I really needed to get away from what was going on with Sora. It was too much for me.

"Hey, Ax. And what did I tell you about that nickname?!" I demanded. Axel laughed as he ignored my question. Whatever. He looked over my head at Naminé, Riku, Sora, and Kairi with great curiosity.

"What's going on over there?" He nodded to the group.

"Couple things," I shrugged. He looked at me with an eyebrow raised. I didn't really want to explain things to him, but I knew he'd bother me about it later. "Riku and Naminé are together now." That seemed to explain everything apparently because. Axel's face brightened up.

"Really?" He said before shouting over my head, "Congrats Riku. You snagged a good one!" He smirked at Naminé causing her to blush furiously while Riku threw him a grin and a nod. I rolled my eyes at him.

"Where are Demyx and Zexion?" I questioned bringing his attention back to me.

"Around somewhere…" Axel said looking around. Just as he said that, Demyx popped up behind him and shouted, "Hey Axel! Hey Roxas!" really loudly in his ear. Axel jumped a few feet at the sound of his voice and I laughed at him. Zexion walked up and stood next to Axel.

"Hi you guys." He greeted us.

"Hey Zexion, Demyx." I greeted them back as Axel shot a glare at the taller blond.

"How's it going?" Demyx asked ignoring Axel's harsh stare.

"Fine." I replied.

"Hey, what's going on with Riku?" Zexion asked and instantly everyone's gaze, except mine, was on Riku again.

"He has a girlfriend now." Axel answered, his grin softening his once hard features.

"Ha, really?" Demyx asked rhetorically. Why did everyone care so much? I looked behind me to see Riku's arm wrapped around Naminé's petite waist. I could only see half of Sora's face, but the half I saw told me that he was still having a hard time being happy for his best friend and new girlfriend. I grimaced at his pained face.

"She's cute." Demyx idly said. "What's her name?"

"I vaguely remember Riku talking about her…" Riku was talking about her? Was it he who asked Naminé out? Did he actually like her? Not that she's not a likeable person…but did Sora ever stand a chance to be with Riku? Or was it a lost cause at the beginning? "N-something. Nina…Naomi…Nami…" Axel listed.

"Naminé." I told him. "Her name is Naminé. And she's pretty sweet." Even though I've talked to her all of 2 times. "Deserves better then Riku." Axel looked at me.

"Do I detect jealousy in our dear, little Roxy's voice?" He teased. Demyx snickered and Zexion couldn't help but let a sly looking grin grow on his face.

"No!" I practically shouted almost immediately, surprisingly myself with how strong the disgust was in my voice. Axel, Demyx, and Zexion laughed at my quick response. Remind me why I became friends with them again? I sighed sharply.

"Shut up you guys." I rolled my eyes. Axel stopped laughing, letting the grin come back.

"Ooh, Roxy's a little defensive. I think he _is _a little jealous of Riku that he's with the girl or," he paused, his grin instantly replaced with a smirk. Demyx and Zexion leaned in, eager to hear what would come out of Axel's mouth next. "Or is Roxas possibly jealous of Naminé since she has taken Riku 'off the market'?"

"Wh-what?!" I choked out, confused on how he even came to that conclusion. I showed Riku nothing more than hatred for him, so why would they even get the idea that I may like him? "I don't want to know how you came to thinking that. It's not worth my time to try and understand you. But I am still not jealous of either of them. I just think Naminé can do better then Riku." I shrugged.

"Whatever you say Roxas, whatever you say." Axel replied, though he didn't seem to believe me still. Nothing I could do about that though…

"It's almost time for homeroom. Let's go you guys." Demyx suddenly said after looking at his watch. Axel and Zexion nodded.

"We'll walk you to your homeroom, Rox." Axel offered. I looked hesitantly back at my cousin, unsure if I should leave him or not. Before I could decide if Sora would be alright by himself, Axel had grabbed my arm and we were walking away. Damn it Axel, why do you have to be so strong?!

**Sora's POV.**

When I saw Roxas being pulled away from me I knew I was all by myself on this. He'd left me with the girl I didn't love, the boy I loved with all my heart, and the girl who had taken said boy away from me before I had a chance. Roxas you are so going to get it when I find you.

Kairi released my hand from her grasp and instead linked her arm with mine. I felt my body go rigid again at her touch. I looked down at her and she smiled at me with her usual cheery smile. She turned her attention back to Riku and Naminé and started chattering about something. I didn't really know what exactly since I tuned her out when she started on the topic of double-dating. Instead I stared at Riku's arm which was snaked around Naminé's waist. I felt tears threatening to come forth as I stared at how perfectly they fit together. I bit my lip to keep the tears at bay. I knew I wouldn't last much longer, especially when Roxas wasn't there at my side keep me from breaking down. It bothered me that I couldn't be strong about this. And that I couldn't even be genuinely happy for Riku and Naminé.

Half the reason this was a problem for me was due to the fact that this strange feeling was churning calmly and slowly around inside of me. I didn't recognize it and the bad thing was that it wasn't a good feeling. It was stronger then anything I'd ever felt. And I didn't like it. But as I kept watching Riku and Naminé, the feeling started to bubble furiously inside of me. It made me feel sick. I had to get away from them. I had no clue how much more I could take being around Riku and Naminé without exploding. I swiftly unlinked my arm with Kairi, turned on my heel and rushed down the hallway.

I faintly heard Kairi shout after me as I slipped into my homeroom only a little ways down the hall. Thankfully neither Riku nor Kairi were in the same homeroom as me. Roxas was though. And he was going to get an earful. Well maybe not, but there was going to be some yelling involved.

I balled up my fists at my side and stomped over to him –my heavy footfalls brought unwanted attention to me but I decided I didn't care; I was on a mission and no amount of staring was going to distract me.

"Roxas!" I shouted. My blond haired cousin looked lazily my way and as soon as he saw my face an expression of alarm formed on his own. I stood in front of him and leaned down until my nose touched his. His blue eyes widened at the weak glare I was giving him.

"Hey Sora," he said with a slight smile.

"Why the hell did you leave me by myself with them?" I asked in my "angry" tone. I rarely got angry at anyone so when I did my tone wasn't really believable.

"Sorry Sora! I didn't have any intention on leaving you; it just kind of happened. Axel pulled me away and I couldn't break his grasp," he exclaimed. I leaned away from him as I slumped down in the chair in front of his desk. I sighed heavily. I didn't feel like being angry at him. I was too depressed about Naminé and Riku being together to feel any other emotion, except, of course, the unknown one bubbling around somewhere in my body.

Roxas offered me a sympathetic look, "I'm sorry about Riku, Sor."

"Nah, don't sweat it. I guess it just wasn't meant to be." I chuckled, but it sounded too forced in my ears so I stopped myself. It slightly surprised me that I couldn't fake being cheerful even though it really shouldn't have been difficult. I was so used to being happy, it should come easily. But really though, when have I ever been good at faking emotions? Something always gives me away one way or another. I looked at Roxas and he patted my shoulder before I turned around in my chair and placed my head on my desk.

The intercom came to life a few minutes later and I tuned out most of the announcements, none of the activities that were being talked about really interested me or concerned me.

But suddenly two new bubbly and excited voices caught everyone's attention; even mine, though the two high pitched tones were sickening in a way, especially when I couldn't find a reason to be cheery.

"Now that that boring stuff is out of the wa-" A voice started but was cut off by a stern voice in the background saying "Rikku" in a warning tone. It was immediately followed by a apologetic "sorry Mr. L" before the voice continued, "Anyways now that that stuff has been taken care of- Is that better? Good- let's get onto some really exciting news! Take it away Selph!"

"…Next Friday the student council will be holding tryouts for slots in this year's Talent Show. They will be held directly after school for those who are interested!" The second voice said. This high tone belonged to Selphie Tilmitt, one of Kairi's friends. She was one of those girl's who is known for her hyper behavior. She stands out to everyone that way so a ton of people know her.

"Yeah, all sorts of talents are accepted, isn't that right Selph?" The first voice that had spoken, belonging to Rikku, an upperclassman and another well known girl, took over again. She was known all around for her peppy attitude and never-ending optimism. Oh and her habit of sometimes making up her own words. I don't actually know how I came to meeting her. It just kind of happened. That's how most people meet her anyways so it doesn't really matter.

"Absolutely!" Selphie's shrill voice answered.

"So practice, practice, practice all those special talents of yours and show us what you've got!" Rikku told us enthusiastically before the intercom became silent. Our talent shows were actually really exciting and fun. And so amusing! Everyone always enjoyed watching the different things people did, even if they were completely lame. Every kid showed up to watch the performers…

After coming to realize that I snapped my fingers. I still planned on confessing my feelings to Riku and I knew exactly how I could do it too, despite that fact that he's with Naminé now. I knew I wouldn't feel any better until I was able to get out what I felt in the open. I just hope that I don't end up ruining the friendship I have now…

**Roxas' POV.**

I wondered what was going through Sora's head when he snapped his fingers so enthusiastically after the announcement about the talent show, but I decided it was best not to ask. I was afraid of the answer he would have given me. Let sleeping dogs lie as some people say. Though the fact that I shouldn't ask him didn't stop me from thinking about it.

But, when lunch came around, I'd completely forgotten about Sora for the time being. There was only so much wondering I could do anyways. As I made my way to my locker to get the things I needed after lunch I spotted Axel and Demyx leaning on lockers by mine.

'Why are they there?' I thought walking up to them. Demyx noticed me first, since Axel's eyes had been closed, and he waved to me.

"Hey Rox!" He grinned. Axel's eyes snapped open and grinned at me too. I mirrored them as went to stand at my locker.

"Hey Dem, Ax." I greeted them as I unlocked my locker and began the task of exchanging books. We were silent until I finished getting out the books I needed. I closed my locker and the three of us began walking. While we walked to the cafeteria, Axel and Demyx started talking randomly about the talent show. I didn't realize I had tuned them out until Axel snapped his fingers in my face. I looked up at him startled.

"Rox, were you even listening?" He asked.

"Nope. Sorry what were you saying?" I questioned. Axel rolled his eyes and gave an exasperated sigh before saying, "Are you planning on doing anything for the show?"

"No, I wasn't actually. I'm more of a spectator, not a performer." I replied with a shrug.

"Aww that's too bad, 'cause Axel here was going to ask you to do something with him." Demyx blurted out who in turn received a rather painful sounding smack on the back of the head courtesy of Axel. I raised an eyebrow at the two as Demyx rubbed his head and Axel shot an annoyed look at him.

"You were Axel?" I asked, staring at him. He looked down at me a grinned.

"Yeah," was all he said.

"Oh, well sorry. I'm not very good at standing in front of others and performing stuff for them." I told him. Axel, now, turned his full attention on me, ignoring Demyx completely.

"Aw, c'mon Roxy! It would be fun! Trust me! Demy, Zexy, and I did a skit last year and it was a blast. Even Zexion would admit that. He hates performing too." Axel told me. I shook my head.

"I'm not as easily persuaded as them then. Besides, I get too nervous on stage and knowing me I'd forget everything and freeze." I replied. Axel scrunched up his nose as he thought of ways to get me to agree, or that was my guess anyways. And I was right because about a minute later Axel said, "We could practice everyday, whatever we plan to do, so we will know it like the backs of our hands! Then you'd have nothing to be nervous about since we'd have it memorized. Plus I'll be there to help you and push you long. We aren't going to do anything huge anyways. I have a few ideas and they aren't complex things." I sighed as he stared at me with his hopeful green eyes.

"We'll practice everyday?"

"Everyday," he confirmed with a tone that said he knew he had me. I sighed sharply again before smiling up at him.

"Fine. You have yourself a partner then." Okay so maybe I am easily persuaded. He held out his hand. I stared down at it, confused as to what he wanted.

"Shake on it. I don't want you backing out," he told me. I rolled my eyes.

"I'm not going to back out Axel." I replied, but he shoved his hand in my face.

"Shake. On. It," he insisted. He shook his hand in my face.

"Fine, fine." I complied and grabbed his hand and shook it. He grinned.

"Good, we'll work on it tomorrow." He told me noticing we were almost to the cafe.

"Why not today?" I asked.

"Work," he replied with a roll of his eyes. I nodded understandingly.

"Well see you later Rox." Axel said as we stopped in front of the doors.

"Okay, see you." I replied and waved to him.

"Bye Rox," Demyx finally piped up. I jumped, startled since I had completely forgotten he was there. Axel chuckled at the sight of my reaction and I laughed at myself. Demyx, oblivious to what had happened, raised an eyebrow at us. I waved it off as if to tell him it wasn't a big deal.

"See you Dem." I turned around and walked through the cafeteria doors feeling unusually happy. Not even Riku's wise cracks towards me when I got to the table he, my cousin, and the rest of his friends were sitting at could ruin it; it helped that his insults were particularly weak today. Everyone, besides Kairi, was feeling awkward around each other. Sora was quiet as he sat beside Riku, both picking at their plates of food in front of them. Kairi and Naminé were chatting quietly, but Naminé kept shifting in her seat, as if the silence between her boyfriend and Sora was bothering her as much as it was bothering me. I just felt awkward because I was one of the only two cheery people at the table. I wasn't used to that, but I tried to eat and push the uneasy feeling floating about the table away from me, though it was proving to be difficult.

I was thankful when lunch was over so I could escape from them. I didn't have any classes with them until last period, which was History and I shared that class with Sora. I went about the rest of my day without an issue, and even when History reared its ugly head and I saw Sora moodily resting his head on his desk I found that my good mood didn't falter.

Confident that I could stay happy even after hearing Sora tell me what was wrong (though the answer was obvious), I asked him.

He replied with a mumbled answer about Riku and Naminé before the class was silenced so Mrs. Harada could start her lesson.

Axel offered me a ride home after school before he, Demyx, and Zexion had to go to work, which I gratefully accepted knowing that if I walked home with Sora, Riku, Kairi, and now Naminé I would be greeted by another long, awkward silence.

I sat in the front as Demyx and Zexion sat in the back and we listened as Demyx talked excitedly and rapidly about the talent show. He was apparently trying out except he didn't know what to do yet. Zexion suggested that he play his guitar and Demyx told him he'd keep it in mind. Axel was unusually quiet on the ride to my house, but from what I could tell he wasn't upset. He had a smile on his face so as to why he was quiet, I guessed that he was just thinking.

When I got home I was able to finish my homework at a reasonable hour so I could take a shower before going to bed and I even got a bit of reading done, though I could barely concentrate because I started to wonder what Axel had in mind for our act.

It scared me slightly when I thought about it actually. I didn't know what went on in his mind so I had no clue what type of acts he was capable of conjuring up. It stressed me out for a few minutes before I told myself to push it out of my mind for the night. I'd have plenty of time to worry some more before I talked about it with Axel the next day.

With some amount of effort on my part I was able to file the worry away and fall into a somewhat peaceful sleep. Before I was fully asleep one question floated through my mind though: Did Sora ever tell Kairi?

**

* * *

  
Wow, That was kind of a bad ending on my part.  
Sorry about that!  
At first, when I put this up I had asked for suggestions for an  
act Roxas and Axel could do, but a few days later I thought of something so  
I'm good on that.  
But I do need suggestions for a good song that you think Roxas would sing.  
I have one in mind but I would still love ideas, cause mine is something to fall back on.  
Please, I will love you all for _ever _if you help me!  
So send in those suggestions (via review or PM)! :D  
Thanks for reading and being AWESOME!**


	9. Awkward Times

****

Author's Note: This is exciting! I'm so close to 10 chapters!  
I can't believe it! So yeah, the last chapter was lacking much of Axel and Roxas BUT  
this chapter focuses on them mainly...Oh Axel and Roxas! How I've missed you so! XD  
Soo, I hope this is an enjoyable chapter to read cause I had lots of fun writing it.  
I think it's one of my favorites so far. Tell me what chu think! :D  
Pairing: Now: AkuRoku. Later: SoRi!  
Disclaimer: Kay, so I don't own Kingdom Hearts or those awesome Ramen Cup things or  
anything else really.  
Enjooooy!

--

Chapter 8.

I was a nervous wreck at school the next day. And it was all because of mysterious Axel being an ass as he refused my request for information about our act. He told me not to be so worried, but I can't help it. I'm a huge worrywart sometimes. Sora tells me to lighten up all the time and relax, but of course I fail horribly at that since I'm not him.

So throughout the day my mind kept wandering to the talent show and what Axel could have in mind, completely distracting me from anything and everything.

I didn't even notice that neither Axel nor Demyx joined me as I walked to the cafeteria come lunchtime. I only noticed, though, when I arrived at the doors and had no one to say "seeya later" to.

I did notice right away, though, that our friend Mr. Awkward Silence had taken "his" place above our lunch table once again when I arrived. This time no one talked. Not a single word was muttered from any one of our mouths. Riku prodded his food with his spork while Sora stared off into the distance, thinking about who knows what. My eyes wandered to the blonde girl next to Riku who, instead of eating, was sketching something on a piece of paper with a pencil held gently in her grasp. Lastly, my azure eyes landed on Kairi. She was chewing slowly on her sandwich while she stared thoughtfully at her hand that was intertwined with Sora's. Immediately the question I had asked myself last night before falling asleep was answered.

Sora did not tell Kairi. He didn't break up with her. I knew things wouldn't go as planned. But he didn't seem bothered by it. Probably too wrapped up in his thoughts to care.

I sighed. _'I can't wait until this awkward atmosphere is gone!'_ I bit down on my sandwich. _'Nor can I wait until I find out what Axel and I are doing for an act…**Gods! Shut up Roxas! Stop thinking about it! This topic is getting really boring!'**_The little voice in my head interrupted my thought process. For once I had to agree with it. I was getting on my own nerves with the topic. _**'Just push it out of your mind. You'll find out soon enough!'**_

And telling myself that finally worked. The rest of the day seemed to fly by and not once did I think about the talent show, Axel, or our act. I was able to get my work done plus some homework, too.

By the time the last bell rang, signaling to everyone in the building that school was over, my mind was clear of all Talent Show related thoughts. But of course, as I am told often, all good things come to an end and boy, as soon as I saw Axel's red-hair as I walked towards my locker, everything came flooding back into my once clear mind.

My mind started to get panicky as I neared my locker slowly. I watched Demyx and Axel converse a little while they waited for me by my locker, blocking other students from getting to their own. When they noticed me, both waved in my direction. I waved back, weakly, and took long strides (well for my short legs they were long) the rest of the way to my locker.

"Hey Roxy." Axel greeted me, grinning, as Demyx said, "Hey Rox."

I mumbled a hello as I undid my lock and yanked open the door.

"Something wrong?" Axel wondered. I looked up at him to see a smirk replacing his grin. I narrowed my eyes slightly before saying, "No. I'm perfectly A-Okay. Thanks." I shoved books into my locker and took others out. Ya'know the daily routine. Axel chuckled.

"Okay, if you say so," he shrugged and went back to chatting with Demyx until I was done at my locker. I slammed the door shut in order for it to close right before I clamped the lock on.

"Ready." I told them. They both looked at me and nodded as Axel pushed himself off the locker. We started walking to the main doors when I realized someone was missing.

"Where's Zexion?" I asked curiously.

"He was abducted by Rikku." Demyx replied. I raised an eyebrow.

"Zexy is good with the technical stuff and Rikku wants to recruit him for the Talent Show to take care of the music and stuff." Axel explained.

"Oh!"

"How do you know that Axel?" Demyx wondered.

"She told me last period. Apparently she thinks he's been avoiding her all day as if he knew that she was going to ask him something about the Talent Show." Axel said.

"Oooh!" Demyx nodded and became silent.

"So Axel…" I began suddenly, but he stopped me from finishing when he said, "If you are going to ask me about our act, don't bother. Got it memorized? You'll find out when we get to my house." He grinned down at me. I rolled my eyes and crossed my arms in front of my chest.

"I still feel that I should know before hand so I have a say. You're just being an ass." I told him. I heard a sigh come from him.

"I'm just trying to have fun. Besides you're just being a baby about this whole matter," he replied. I inhaled a sharp breath, telling him I was annoyed by the fact that he wouldn't even give me a clue about our act and that I was not happy about being called a baby. Axel kept his mouth shut as the three of us walked to his car. I gave Demyx the front seat this time. I didn't feel like sitting next to the biggest jerk in the world.

...Okay so maybe I was being a baby about all of this. I'll admit that, but don't you think that since we're partners that I should be let in on all the planning and not left out of the loop? I do. So Demyx slid into the passenger seat and as I opened the door to the back seat, I glanced up and caught Axel's green eyes staring at me in a confused manner. I 'hmphed' and got into the car. I heard, once again, a sigh come from Axel, but this time it actually sounded more like a groan. He got into the car and started it up. He backed out of his parking space. Then he drove out of the school's lot and began the way to Demyx's house.

It was very long, silent ride today. Demyx hardly uttered a word to either of us except to Axel when he asked to change the radio station. It must be awkward for even him. I ignored them after Demyx changed the radio to some station where a bubble-gum pop song was playing and pressed my forehead against the cool glass of the window beside me.

When we arrived at Demyx's house about 10 minutes later we still hadn't broken the silence. The taller blond practically jumped out of the car before Axel had even stopped in front of his house. I guess it was that bad.

"Bye you guys. I hope you resolve this conflict soon," he told us before slamming the car door shut and running to the safety of his home. Axel looked back at me when Demyx left.

"Are you going to sit up front now?" He asked, almost sounding hopeful.

"No thank you. I'm perfectly fine back here." I replied politely. Axel sighed.

"Seriously, Roxas, why are you being such a baby about this?" He asked.

"Why are you being such a mysterious ass? Why won't you tell me what we are doing for the Talent Show?" I replied.

"I asked you a question first," he told me.

"Well I'm not answering your question until mine are answered." I retorted.

"Gods Roxas," he said exasperated. "I'm not being an ass about this; at least I don't think I am. Mysterious, yes 'cause it's fun, but I'm not being an ass on purpose. I just want it to be a surprise! That's all." Axel said, smiling at me. "Your turn."

"Well for your information I'm not _trying_ to be a baby. I just think that I should get to know about our act so I'm not out of the loop." I told him. "And so I don't have myself in a nervous wreck, though that plan has been ruined already." Axel chuckled.

"Ah, I see. You've really been nervous about this whole thing?"

"Uh, yeah." I replied with a tone that said "wasn't it obvious?" This was apparently amusing to Axel because he let out another laugh. I rolled my eyes.

"You're silly, Rox." He told me and turned back to the wheel. "I'll tell you if you sit up here with me." His green eyes glinted in the rearview mirror as he patted the seat next to him.

"Really?" I asked suspiciously.

"Mhm…" He replied. I sighed and unbuckled myself from the backseat. I clumsily climbed over to the passenger seat with my backpack and plunked myself down beside him. "Buckle up," he reminded me.

"Yes mother." I mumbled and buckled myself in again. As soon as the click was heard, Axel pulled the car away from the curb and drove down the street. I looked at him expectantly, waiting for him to tell me about our act, except he didn't mutter a word. "Er, Axel?"

"Yeah Rox?" He glanced at me quickly before returning his eyes to the road ahead.

"You said you'd tell me about our act if I sat up here." I reminded him.

"That I did…" He nodded.

"Well?" I prompted him.

"What?" He asked. I sighed, annoyed.

"What's our act?!" I said. He laughed.

"I never said I'd tell right now. I never said _when _I'd tell you actually." He grinned broadly at me. I widened my eyes.

"You're such a bastard Axel." I told him and punched his arm with all my might. He started laughing.

"Ow, Roxas. No hitting the driver!" He yelled, still laughing. I crossed my arms across my chest. He had outwitted me. Damn him. As badly as I wanted to be mad at him, I was having a tough time doing so.

"Great trick there Axel." I decided and chuckled to myself, seeing that it was amusing. "I hate you so much."

"I know," he replied finally able to contain his laughter. He went back to concentrating on driving while I fiddled with the radio dial. After a few minutes I was still trying to find a station I liked when Axel finally reached down and slapped my hand away. "Gods Rox. Stop playing with it. It's giving me a headache." I sat back immediately as he pressed a random button. The speakers suddenly blasted this hardcore rock song causing us both to jump. I think I might have squeaked a little since Axel was laughing at me _again_. He pressed another button and classical music floated out of the speakers this time. Axel made a disgusted noise and went to change it, but I slapped his hand away this time.

"Leave it. Classical music is soothing." I told him. He grunted but put his now free hand back on the wheel.

--

We got to Axel's house a little bit later (it was actually a pretty good distance away from the high). My jaw practically fell to the car floor when I saw it. It was huge (compared to mine which is teeny tiny) and jade green. It was really nice.

We both got out of the car and made our way through the garage and into the house. It was beautiful inside too! It was crisp and clean, as if not a speck of dust could land on anything before it was swiped up with a feather duster. Definitely much cleaner then my house.

"You thirsty? Or hungry?" He asked. I snapped my head to the side to look at him as we walked into the vast kitchen.

"I'm afraid to dirty any part of this house if I drop something…" I said honestly. He laughed at me.

"Don't worry. If we do drop something then we'll just cover it up! Mum and Dad will never suspect anything. That's what we do when Demyx is here," he told me with a sly grin. I nodded.

"Okay then I'll have water." I told him.

"Water? That's it? Aw, you're no fun Roxy." Axel joked as he went to his refrigerator to get us drinks. I shrugged my shoulders. He tossed me a bottle of water and grabbed a jug of orange juice. He poured the juice into a glass and placed the jug back into the fridge. He motioned me with one hand, as he held the juice in the other, to follow him down the hall. I followed him closely, in fear that I might get lost, until we stopped at a door. Axel opened it and walked in. Of course I followed him in and when I did it felt like I was in a totally different universe. Axel's room wasn't as I expected it. I had figured, since his whole house was clean and sanitary, that his parents would make him keep his room that way too. But I was so wrong. It looked like a normal teenager's room. Clothes strewn everywhere and I mean _everywhere_! A bed still unmade from the morning. A stereo, computer, and a good sized T.V. had places in the room too.

"Uh, Roxas? You going to sit down?" Axel asked bringing me out of my state of awe. I raised an eyebrow at him as I tried to comprehend what he had said.

"Oh right." I replied softly as I looked around his room for a place to sit. I made my way over to the bed and sat down, clutching my water in my hands. Axel, who had sat himself on his computer chair spun around and placed his eyes on the screen. He brought up a file, clicked a couple times and suddenly music flooded loudly in the room through the speakers.

"So, my house not exactly how you expected it?" He asked as he got up and walked over to the window nearest to his bed. I shook my head.

"Not at all. It's huge. And…really nice." I told him.

"Thanks. It's a little two big for four people though. Well more like one person since my parents are always traveling for their jobs. My brother's at college and he hardly visits, so it's usually just me and the maid that comes." Axel informed me. I looked at him incredulously.

"You have a maid?!" He looked at me and grinned. He must have seen the quick glance I had taken around his room.

"Yeah, but I told her to keep her cleaning supplies and stuff out of my room. I like it like this. It's comfortable." He nudged a few articles of clothing with his toe. I nodded. "So let's get started on that act." _Finally!_ I perked up instantly and gave him my full attention, well sort of. My eyes kept wandering to the posters hung up all around his room. Axel made his way over to his computer and searched through his music before clicking twice on the file. A new song started to play and Axel started tapping his foot on his rug to the beat of the music.

"Axel…?" He seemed to be in a trance by the techno-ish beat of the song. A grin broke out of his face as he began swaying his hips and move around his room. "Erm, Axel…" I couldn't seem to break him of his trance. As he danced around, I watch him amused. Axel was the last person I thought would ever dance to music when he was alone. He never struck me as someone who did that. Sora does it all the time, so I should be used to it. He doesn't care where he is, if there is a good beat he'll dance. He's an odd boy. They run in the family, these oddities. After the first song, his computer picked another one at random and Axel continued to dance. I started to think he forgot about me, actually, until he finally spoke up.

"I was thinking we should do a dance routine. Ya'know, like one to a really, really catchy song?" He looked at me when he finally stopped dancing. I hadn't realized what he had said at first, since I was caught up watching him move around, so I blinked at him and said, "Wh-what?"

"Dance…ya'know…like this…" He paused and started to do a very flamboyant twirl, except he stepped on his shoelace and tipped over, falling flat on his face. I started cracking up, falling back on the bed. In a matter of seconds, tears were flowing down my cheeks and I was clutching my stomach. I managed to sit up as I laughed and cracked open a tearing eye. Axel looked up at me and grinned. "Well, not exactly like that. I'm hoping to be a little more graceful when we are being serious."

More giggles bubbled out of me and I couldn't stop. It felt physically impossible to get myself to calm down. The face he made as he went down was stuck in my head and it was one of the funniest looks I've ever seen.

"Oh…hahaha…my…hahahaha…GODS!" I managed to get out before erupting into more giggles. I suddenly felt the bed shift and I cracked an eye open again to see Axel leaning over me, a menacing smirk on his face. _'Uh oh!'_

"Stop laughing at me! Roxas! Stop laughing or else!" He ordered, humor in his voice. But I couldn't stop, as I've said before. I just couldn't. My sides and stomach were killing me!

I did manage to say, though, "Or else what?"

"Or else…This!" And he reached one hand for my side and the other for my neck and started poking them and tickling them. This of course only made it worse. My laughter got louder as he tickled me and I tried squirming away, but I failed at doing that.

"St-stop!" I pleaded and my legs were flailing about as I tried to get away from him.

"Not until you stop laughing at me for my big face plant!" He shouted about my laughs.

"I ca-can't s-stop un-unless you quit tickling m-m-me first!" I yelled and by now Axel was laughing with me.

Finally after another minute of torture, Axel left my sides and neck alone. He placed his butt back in his computer chair. I sat up on the bed, panting from loss of breath when I was being tickled, and held my stomach gingerly. Axel was grinning at me like an idiot. My face felt hot so I figured it must be flushed too. Once I was able to catch my breath after a few minutes I said, "Gods Axel, you're freaking brutal."

"I've had a lot of practice with Demyx," he replied and turned to his computer to play a different song. I chugged down half of my water before saying, "So a dance routine…I don't know Axel…I'm not really the dancing type." He spun around in his chair to face me.

"Don't worry about that Rox. You're partnered with the master." He stood up, eyeing me. "Besides I think you have _some_ rhythm in those hips of yours." He winked at me before turning his music on again. Axel turned back around and grabbed my arm gently. He pulled me towards him. As he moved his body to the beat, my own seemed to move along in time. He pulled me close, his hands guiding my hips smoothly. Heat flared from my cheeks and ears as his hands ghosted over my hips and accidentally (I think!) my butt. The butterflies that had been gone for a bit made a grand appearance in my gut, making themselves at home once again, bringing with them a new feeling, something unlike the nervous feeling I had been experiencing before. The close contact of our bodies sent them into a furious flutter and my entire body heated up along with it.

As we moved in perfect sync with each other to the techno music, Axel lowered his head slowly and breathed heavily into my ear, "See, you're a natural."

That did it for me immediately. Once his hot breath caressed my ear I knew my body wouldn't take much more. I pulled away from him instantly and backed off, my eyes avoiding his. I rubbed the back of my neck nervously and said, "Uh well it's getting late so I better start heading home. My mother will get worried. Here's my number I guess, if you need to get in touch with me between tonight and the next time I see you." I wrote down my cell phone number quickly and placed it on his bed. I hurriedly gathered my things and quickly walked out the bedroom door, leaving Axel by himself. I made my way down the hallway, the music blasting from his room growing faint, and got to the kitchen before someone grabbed my arm, forbidding me to go any further.

"Roxas wait. Let me drive you home." Axel's voice, unusually soft sounding, came from behind me. I spun around and noticed the confused expression on his face, but decided to ignore it. "Let me drive you home…" He repeated.

"No, I'll be fine taking the bus. Thanks." I replied, wriggling my wrist out of his grasp. "Seeya later Ax." And with that I walked through the kitchen and out of the house.

I began my way towards the bus stop. As I neared it, I saw that the bus was already there and people were boarding so I ran as fast as my legs allowed the rest of the way. Panting, I climbed up the stairs, deposited a dollar in look-alike meter thing at the front of the bus for fair and took a seat beside a window. I stared out said window as the bus began moving.

Thoughts about what had happened barely ten minutes before ran through me head and I felt my face heat up again, turning red without a doubt too. I remembered the pleasurable sensation that I'd felt as Axel guided my hips with his and felt my face heat up even more, if that was even possible. This new feeling I felt towards Axel, the one the butterflies as brought with them, confused me and I wanted nothing more to smash my head hard against the bus window. Unfortunately, though, I knew that would solve nothing and only cause me to get a headache, so I rested the side of my face closest to the window against its cool glass, and kept it there for the rest of the way home.

--

The bus dropped me off a street away from my house so it took me a bit of time to get home. Between the time I had left the bus stop and started my trek home, I had received many text messages from Axel. All were various forms of the questions: _"What's wrong?" "Why did you leave so suddenly?" "Are you mad?"_ and _"Did I offend you in some way?"_ All of which I didn't answer because I wasn't really in the mood to talk to anyone, especially him, right now. I knew I wasn't being fair to him, not answering his seemingly concerned questioning, but I didn't think it was fair of him to make me feel such confusing and unfamiliar feelings. I also knew this was illogical thinking, but was I really expected to think any better in the state I was in? I think not.

So as I walked home, I let my cell phone keep on vibrating in my pocket from new, unread text messages. I wasn't planning on answering him any time soon.

But, as I reached the front door of my house, the texts had stopped coming, much to my relief. He'd finally given up. Good. I walked into my house and slumped down into a kitchen chair and rested my head on the table. Mom came in a few seconds later, probably to see who had come in, and asked, "What's the matter Sweetie?" I picked my head up and she bent down to kiss my forehead.

"Nothing really." I replied.

"Really?" She quirked an eyebrow in that knowing way. She always knew there was something wrong. Always.

"Well no. But I'd rather not talk about it…" I told her. Mom nodded and walked out, knowing that when I said "I'd rather not talk about it" that I _really_ don't want to talk at all. I sighed and started to take out my homework, remembering that I couldn't rest until I had finished it.

When I finally did finish it, about 3 hours later (What? I got distracted!), I trudged up the stairs to my room. I kicked off my shoes and flopped onto my bed, face first. I felt very tired all of a sudden and it was only 7 o'clock. My room, already enshrouded in darkness, made it easy for me to fall asleep when I closed my eyes.

--

What seemed like seconds later, I woke up and looked up at my clock.

11:36

What an odd time to wake up. Mom didn't even wake me up for dinner…My stomach growled hungrily as I thought about the dinner I missed. I got up and walked down to the kitchen, where the only source of light was from the little light above the sink. I carefully made my way over to a cabinet and opened it up. I grabbed a Cup of Ramen from the lowest shelf and filled it a little bit with water. I placed it in the microwave, set the cooking time, and pressed 'start'. I hopped onto a stool near the counter and folded my arms across the surface of the counter. I was staring at the microwave as it did its thing when my cell phone, which was still in my pocket, vibrated. I reached into the pocket and took out my phone. I flipped it open and stared at the screen. It was a new message from Axel. Big surprise there. I pressed 'read it now' and scanned my eyes over it.

_Roxas, I'm sorry for whatever I did. I don't want you to be mad. Forgive me?_

I sighed. He really thought he did something to upset me? Well he did but it wasn't really his fault I reacted the way I had. I quickly typed back a message.

_You didn't do anything. I don't actually know why I reacted that way, but you didn't cause it. I'm not mad. Stop worrying. Kay?_

I sent it and got up to check on my ramen. My phone vibrated in my hand and I looked down to read the message.

_I didn't? Well that's great! I'm so happy._

I rolled my eyes.

_Yeah, yeah._

The microwave beeped, signaling that it was finished. I hopped off the stool and ran to the cooking appliance. I yanked open the door and grabbed the Styrofoam cup and a fork from the drawer below it. I sat down at the counter and immediately started to stuff the noodle-y goodness into my mouth. My phone lit up again as I ate happily. I pressed the 'ok' button and read the message.

_I'm going to sleep. So I'll see you tomorrow okay? Oh! And you will be coming over again right? So we can work on our act._

_Yeah. I'll come over again. G'night._

I shut off my phone after that and went back to eating my ramen in peace. I eat way too much ramen for my own good. Mom said once that she wouldn't be surprised if I turned into a ramen noodle. Yeah like that'd ever happen. The only bad thing out of the good things about ramen is that it makes me have really random dreams. They're awkward too. Stupid noodles.

When I was done I went upstairs to try and laid on my bed to try and sleep again, but for some reason sleep wouldn't come…or maybe it did and I didn't realize it because the next thing I knew I was at the beach. I don't remember the time in between me getting up and walking down to the shore, but I somehow got to the beach. I was laying on my back, listening to the waves crash up on the shore and staring up at the starlit sky. The breeze floating off the ocean caressed my skin but I didn't feel cold, like I normally would, which struck me as odd, but I brushed off that minor detail. I placed my hands behind my head and sighed.

"Hey Roxy," someone purred beside me. I turned my head quickly and yelped when I saw Axel laying me. When did he get there?! His head was turned slightly and his piercing green eyes were staring at me.

"Hey …Axel." I replied, staring back at him. "What are you doing here?"

"Just taking in the sight," he told me.

"…Oh really? You do realize that you're staring at me, though, don't you?" I smirked. He returned it with his own.

"I do." He shimmied closer to me. What. The. Hell? What is he doing?! My eyes darted across his face nervously. He reached his hand forward and grabbed my chin gently. Okay! What is wrong with him? Is he drunk? On drugs? What! What is causing him to do this?!

"A-axel? What the hell are you doing?" I asked even though I wasn't really sure if I wanted an answer. He leaned in.

"Watch," he mumbled before placing his lips on mine. Oh my god! Oh my god! Is he kissing me?! Okay, this is too surreal to actually be happening! It has to be a dream! Axel wouldn't do this in real life! It just has to be a dream! It has to be-

"Roxas? Roxas, wake up!" My eyes shot open to reveal Mom standing over me, wrapped in a bathrobe, and a worried look on her face.

"Mom?" I mumbled. "What's wrong?"

"You were moaning in your sleep. I was concerned. Were you having a nightmare or something?" She asked. The scene between me and Axel enveloped my mind. I blushed. So it was all a dream. I knew it couldn't be real. I was so thankful that my room was dark so she couldn't see my red face or Mom would have been questioning me further.

"Yeah, Mom. It was just a nightmare." I lied. "Sorry for waking you."

"Not a problem Honey. I was coming in anyways to tell you to get up for school." School? It was morning already?! Damn, it feels like I haven't slept at all! I sighed.

"Okay thanks." She nodded and left. I covered my eyes with my palms and goraned. "I have no clue how I am going to face Axel now thanks to that dream...!" I let out another groan before I got up and walked out to the bathroom.

**--**

**Author's Note: Hm, so Roxas is totally OOC in this chapter! Oops XD Gomen.  
I really didn't mean for him to act like a huge baby and come out sounding like a flustered girl; it  
just kind of..happened. Next chapter he will definitely be in character...for the most part!  
And the random sentences that are in bold is the voice in Roxas' head, by the way.  
Incase you were curious  
So I hope you liked it! I dunno when I'll be able to get the next chapter up cause of school and such though.  
It'll be a surprise!**

**So review please! I'm trying to get up to 45(ish) reviews before chapter 9! So hopefully that happens!  
Until next time, my awesome readers!  
TTFN**


	10. All Because Of A Dream: Pt 1

**Author's Note: **Okay so this is going to be a long one! First I just wanted to say to all of you: **I am so sorry I haven't updated!** I really really really am. I didn't mean to keep you waiting so long! I feel awful about it! I just had to take a break from writing. I really needed it. I hope I haven't lost anyone with this long wait! I promise it won't happen again! Though, out of the long wait came an uber long chapter. So unbelievabley long that I have to split in two. I don't want you guys to be thinking "Ohmygod, it's never-ending!" XD So you'll be getting two chapters this week! Yay! Also I'd like to thank you all for reviewing/alerting/and favoriting! All your kind words and such really pushed me along! I really appreciate it! I'd also like to thank you for getting me to 40 reviews in total. That's a ton for me! I am utterly grateful! So thank you so much again!

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing!  
**Warning:** AkuRoku. SoRi. Don't like that sorta stuff, then don't read it.

Enjoy!

**--**

**Chapter 9.**

All throughout the morning I could feel the dream festering in the back of my mind. I felt myself worrying about it as I got ready for school. It's odd too, because I knew it was just a dream and nothing more. But for some reason it wouldn't let me forget about it, as if it were out to get me, waiting for a chance to show itself again and have me embarrass myself at the worst moment.

As I made my way to school, I deeply considered talking to someone about it. I mean, I figured it may help get rid of it if it were shared out in the open, so it wasn't just known by me. I used to do it with the nightmares I used to get when I was younger and it always helped. Why wouldn't it now? I quickly ran through my list of friends to see who would be suited to know this terrible dream. Demyx and Zexion were definitely out. Demyx who certainly blab it to someone and I hardly know Zexion so why would I trust him with this type of thing? Axel was definitely out because of obvious reason.

I came to Sora on my list and stopped at him. He seemed like the best person to talk to about things such as this dream. After all, we are very close and I am always helping him with his issues. And he _could_ be helpful at times. Besides, I know I could always scare him into secrecy with all the blackmail I have...

So Sora seemed to be the most plausible answer and I was all set on entrusting him with my dream...that is, until I actually got to school and found Sora. That is when my whole plan on telling my cousin went down the drain. Yeah, I chickened out. When I saw him, I immediately decided to keep the dream to myself. Just telling myself it was only a stupid dream will have to suffice until I can think of a better solution because there is no way I can tell Sora now. So as my mind worked towards putting the dream out of my thoughts, I placed my best smile on my face and walked, chin up, over to Sora.

"Hey Sora." I greeted my spiky-haired brunet cousin at his locker. He turned around and gave me a tired smile. "Wow, you look really tired."

"Thank you Mr. Obvious," he snapped. Whoa, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning...

"Sorry." I apologize, even though I wasn't really sure why.

"Eh, it's not your fault. I should apologize. You didn't do anything wrong." Sora smiled. "So... sorry."

"It's okay." I replied. "So why are you so tired?"

"I went to bed really late last night and didn't get enough sleep," he told me.

"Wow, you're starting to be like me..." I mumbled. He quirked an eyebrow up at me in curiosity. When I realized he didn't understand what I was talking about I waved it off and said, "Care to tell why you were up so late?"

"Well I couldn't sleep so I went down to the secret cave Riku, Kairi, and I always hung out in when we were little and I ended up staying there for the rest of the night 'cause got caught up in my thoughts and lost track of time. I think I fell asleep around 4 and the only reason I woke up this morning was because I heard a lot of noise near the entrance of the cave. I barely got any sleep." Sora explained before yawning.

"Wow...that sucks." I pointed out to him.

"Ya'think?" He opened his locker with a yank. "...Sorry," he apologized again after he realized how rude he sounded.

"S'okay." I waved it off. "So Sor," I paused and leaned against the locker beside his. "Why haven't you told Kairi yet?" He looked over at me with half-lidded eyes.

"What are you talking about?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about." I told him. He stared at me blankly until I saw a light bulb go off above his head.

"Oh...right...Well the thing is, right moment hasn't come along yet." Sora shoved a few books in his bag. I nodded even though I knew he was stalling. I looked around and caught sight of Kairi making a beeline towards us.

"Well maybe this moment will be the right one." I suggested.

"Huh?" He asked looking very confused. I nodded my head towards Kairi and he looked behind him. He gave a small groan and turned back to his locker. Sora was about to slam his head against his locker when Kairi popped up next to and gave him a small kiss on the cheek. He looked at me helplessly before turning to her with a fake smile on his face. I decided then that it would be best if I left so I whispered, "good luck" in his ear and started walking away.

Faintly I heard Kairi ask what I was wishing him luck on and then before I was officially out of hearing range, I heard Sora start off with, "Kairi, I need to tell you something..."

I sighed, hoping he wouldn't chicken out, as I made my way to my own locker. Before I was even remotely close, I saw bright red hair amid the duller colors and stopped in my tracks. Axel. The dream I had finally managed to hold back flooded into my head. I felt my ears grow hot and knew I definitely could not face him just yet. Not after that dream. I really shouldn't have had the noodles last night! Damned noodles!

I turned on my heel and sprinted down the hallway to find a new route to my homeroom, ignoring the stares I was getting. I'd have to get my books before class.

I made a gigantic square in order to get to my homeroom undetected by Axel or anyone associated with him. When I slipped into class I felt a light tap on my shoulder. I whipped my head around to see who it was to find Sora smiling slightly at me.

I let out a breath, relieved.

"Hey Sora." I finally said.

"I finally told her, Rox," he immediately told me.

"Who? Kairi?" He gave me a look that clearly said "Duh."

"How'd she take it?" I asked.

"I don't really know. She was just very silent and ...I don't know," he sighed. "Don't be surprised if she's not sitting with us at lunch today."

"Okay," was the only reply I gave to him. "Let's go sit down." He nodded and we walked over to our regular seats. We were silent for a little bit until Sora turned around to look at me.

"I almost forgot to tell you; that guy....what's-his-face? Axel is it? Yeah, Axel...well he was looking for you," he informed me.

"Really?"

"Yeah, he needed to talk to you about something. He wouldn't say what, but it seemed important. He looked a little...worried. I don't know." Sora shrugged. _'Axel...worried? I wonder what about...' _I thought curiously. I quickly shrugged it off when the announcements came on. Once again Rikku and Selphie reminded us about the Talent Show along with all the other school news that we had to hear every morning. I easily tuned them out as I rested my head on my arms, hoping I'd be able to take a very small cat-nap in the 15 minutes we had left of homeroom. But that didn't happen, of course, because as soon as the intercom became silent, someone was poking my head, trying to get my attention.

I picked my head up, an annoyed grumble slipping out of my mouth, as my eyes locked onto the blue ones of my cousin.

"What, Sora?" I asked.

"Guess what Rox!"

"...what?"

"I'm trying out for the Talent Show!" He was grinning at me.

"Really?"

"Yupp! I'm going to sing!"

"Oh Gods no! Why?!" Sora looked surprised with my reaction.

"So I can confess to Riku that way, but by being much more subtle then outright saying it to his face."

"You can't find any other way?" He shook his head. Of course not. "Well good luck with that, I guess..." Sora grinned at me. I hope he doesn't make everyone's ears bleed...

"Thanks!" I placed my head on my arms again and sighed. "Oh, I think I might go to the music room to start practicing during lunch, so if I'm not at our table, you know where I'll be."

"Mhm...right." I mumbled into my arm. The people around me suddenly started moving around, including my cousin. I looked up and saw everyone starting to file out of the room. School had finally begun for the day.

--

Have you ever had one of those days when you try so desperately hard to avoid someone you'd usually enjoy seeing and in the end nearly bumping into him or her at the turn of every corner? If you answered no to this then I envy you. But if you answered yes, then you understand how exhausting it can be trying to hide yourself from that one person, right? Now you may be asking 'Roxas, why on Destiny Islands would you be bringing this all up?' and my answer is very simple: it's because I am having one of those unpleasant days.

Everywhere I turn I see Axel. Even in places I don't _ever _see him on any other day. It's so tiresome, having to avoid him like this, but I feel like I won't be able to function properly if I speak to him. Every time I catch even a glimpse of him, my dream comes back to the front of my mind to haunt me. It's awful and embarrassing, even though I am the only one who knows about it. My mind keeps tricking me into thinking that if he even looks at me he'll know right away about my dream and humiliate me in front of the entire student population. So my best bet is to stay far away from him.

And that plan was working semi-well and I was able to finally let my guard down -once I quickly checked to make sure Axel was no where to be seen- when I reached my locker to do the tedious switching of books before lunch. Giving a sigh of relief, for Axel had yet to pop up beside me, I shut my locker door, slung my backpack over my shoulder and proceeded to turn away from my locker...only to slam right into Axel's chest. And how do I know it's Axel? His scent, of course, gives him away. Not only did he smell of campfire smoke, but this time it was mixed with cinnamon. It actually burned my nose when I breathed it in, but even so, I enjoyed it.

"Uh, hey Roxy," he greeted me, pushing me back gently so he could see my face. I avoided his eyes as he studied my slowly reddening cheeks and looked at the lockers on the other side of the hallway. "What a familiar scene this is, except it didn't involve you falling on your ass." He chuckled and I readjusted my backpack. When he realized I wasn't laughing with him and his laughter ceased. "Roxas? Something wrong?" I shook me head, now glancing at my feet, willing myself to keep the dream from seeping into my thoughts once more. It was hard keeping my thoughts clean when Axel was standing right in front of me. Axel crouched down a bit and turned his head upward so he could look at my face.

"DidI do something to upset you yesterday?" He asked.

"No it's nothing. Really. I have to go Axel. I'll see you later, okay?" I got my feet moving and brushed past him. I felt bad for treating him like that, but I had my mental health to think of, and standing there chatting with him was not doing me any good. He_ was_ kind of the problem, I guess. I was feeling a bit better as I got farther and farther away from him, but unfortunately it didn't last long because before long I heard another set of steps echoing mine. He was following me, _again_.

"Roxas, if something's wrong tell me! What did I do?" Axel's voice echoed in the empty halls. He sounded closer to me. Next thing I knew, a hand was on my shoulder and he stopped me in my tracks. Spinning me around quickly, my eyes met his; this was the **one** thing I didn't want to happen and yet it did anyway. I stared at him as my dream came back. His low, husky drawl, his piercing green eyes studying my face carefully, his lips on mine...It was too much. My head was fogging up; the part where he was kissing me filled my head until that was all I saw in my mind. I shook my head fiercely, and pushed him away. I turned on my heel and broke into a dead run. Lockers, classrooms, and halls were passing by me in a blur. I didn't know where I was going and I didn't care. I let my feet carry me as fast as they possibly could, until I had to slow down to catch my breath. I leaned against a locker and closed my eyes, taking in deep breaths, filling my lungs with much needed oxygen. Breathe in, breathe out, breathe in, breathe out. My mind began to clear as I instructed myself to just keep breathing.

Finally, my heart was beating at its normal pace and my breathing had steadied too. I started to walk myself down the hall slowly, not really eager to get to the cafeteria. I sighed and thoughts about what had just happened came back to me. I suddenly felt terrible for what I had done. I had actually _run away_ from Axel. I had never done that before, overreacted the way I had, I mean. I left Axel there in the hallway, alone and most likely confused. I wanted to slam my head against something. And I did. Right against a locker. And few times too until my head hurt too much to continue. I sighed again. I knew hurting myself wouldn't make these horrid feelings go away so I continued to walk to the hall. As I turned the corner, I almost crashed into Sora, who apparently had been coming my way.

"Hey Rox!" He greeted me cheerfully at once.

"Hi Sora." I replied. "I thought you were going to go practice in the music room during lunch?"

"Oh! I was just there, but I desperately needed to go to the bathroom. And that's where I was headed just before I bumped into you," he grinned.

"Ah." I tried smiling back, but it must have looked very forced since Sora's grin faded and he asked, "Gee Rox, is something wrong? You look depressed." I shrugged.

"I guess I could be better."

"Ya'wanna talk? 'Cause we could while we take a walk to the bathroom." Sora offered. I nodded. I really needed to tell someone about what was going on. Sora was allowing me to open up to him and I _had _to take this opportunity because I felt that it would never be offered to me again.

As we walked, Sora stayed silent while I gathered my thoughts together. When I was ready to talk, I took a deep breath and began hesitantly.

"I ran away...from Axel few a minutes ago." I started. Sora looked at me.

"Really? Why would you do that?" He questioned. I shrugged. "Well there must have been a reason. People don't normally run away from others unless there is a reason behind it."

"It's a stupid reason though."

"You can tell me," he said. I sighed. I knew that without him telling me. _'Come on Rox...' _I urged myself before gulping and saying, "I ran away because of a dream I had."

"A dream? What kind of dream?" He asked. I looked at him.

"Well...it was an embarrassing dream about...uh..."

"Axel?" Ding, ding, ding. We have a winner. I nodded. "And it was embarrassing..." I nodded again. "What happened that was so embarrassing?"

"I'd rather not say." I said. I was hoping he'd use his hidden deductive reasoning skills to figure it out. And he eventually got it. Sora's eyes widened a little bit and he chuckled.

"That bad?"

"Kind of, yeah."

"Okay so let's see, you two kissed in your dream, didn't you?" Sora guessed. I widened my eyes at Sora.

"Yeah...how'd you know?" I wondered.

"Well Rox, your definition of 'bad' isn't exactly my definition of bad. You think kissing is 'bad', and well my definition is a lot worse." I raised an eyebrow. What exactly is he saying? Does Sora, my seemingly innocent cousin, have riskier dreams? He smirked at me, as if he was reading my thoughts. Yes, that is exactly what he is saying! Wow, I _never_ knew Sora was like... that.

"Well honestly, it _is_ bad, especially since it was about a guy I JUST MET! It's understandable for you to have dreams about...Riku...but I mean you've known him for an unbelievably long time."

"Don't pull me into it Rox, and try to force the subject onto us. Anyway, me thinks you have a crush on this guy," he said with this tone he gets when he knows he's right.

"But I barely know this guy! I can't like him. Besides he's a _guy_. All the people I've dated in the past were female. Kairi when we were younger, Olette, that girl that used to live down the street from me." I counted off. "That alone says I shouldn't like guys." Sora rolled his eyes.

"Hello! I dated Kairi for Gods know how long, but I still ended up falling for Riku. 'Sides Rox, love knows no boundaries. It doesn't care that you are 'supposed' to like girls. It more 'goes after' the people who make you happy, no matter what sex they may be." He makes a very good argument and I'm having trouble disagreeing with him.

"I never said I loved him..." I decided to protest a minor detail. He sighed and stopped, making me stop too.

"Roxas, you get my point! You can't stop liking something just because you think you shouldn't. Or society says you shouldn't. It doesn't work like that. Your heart tells you what to do, and you should follow it. That's what I'm doing."

"Yeah? And how's that working out for you?" I replied. Sora took on a hurt expression when I said that, and I sighed. "Sorry Sora. I didn't mean it like that."

"Yeah, yeah Rox," he waved me off, shrugging. "I know it must seem like nothing's happening, but I'm planning out my steps with great caution so nothing happens that may ruin things forever." He said, smiling at me. I shrugged and we became silent for the rest of our walk.

We finally arrived to the bathroom and entered. Sora went to relieve himself and I hung out at the sinks.

"So, do _you _think you like him? Never mind what everyone else says, what do you think? What does your heart tell you?" Sora called out. I shrugged my response again before realizing he couldn't see me, and then I called back, "I don't know..."

"He's a great guy and a great friend to me. I don't know if I want to let myself like him as more then a friend in fear of ruining the relationship we already have." I feel like a girl...

"Yeah I can understand that dilemma." Sora replied as he flushed and made his way over to me to wash his hands at the sink. After doing that, we left and began walking back.

"But like I said before, follow your heart, it'll tell you what to do. Then things will just...fall into place." He smiled softly at the thought. I stared at him. He's being unusually insightful and deep today...

"I guess, but what if my heart is wrong?" I questioned. Sora shrugged.

"You win some, you lose some. If things don't work out with Axel, you'll find someone new," he replied. Bye-bye insightful Sora! I sighed; disappointed I didn't get a more fulfilling answer from him.

"Great, thanks Sora." I sighed again. I guess I'll just have to think about it more.

"You're very welcome!" He replied, oblivious to my sarcasm. I stayed silent and walked him back to the music room. After we had parted, I decided to make my way to the library. I had about 10-15 minutes left of lunch so I had time to sit somewhere to have some quiet time. The school library was always the best for that.

I walked into the library a couple minutes later and plunked myself down on a nice plush chair. I took out a book and opened it to the page I was currently on, except I didn't end up reading. Instead, I completely spaced off, becoming deep in thought.

--

**Author's Note: **Okay, so I know it ends abruptly, but there is a good reason for it! It's 'cause the chapter was too damn long! XD As I previously stated. I had to cut it off somewhere. Also, I fear I maybe rushing Roxas' feelings for Axel even though it's already the ninth chapter. Maybe that's just me. :shrugs: Well I hope you enjoyed it! And I hope it was worth the wait.

Constructive criticism, encouragement, etc is appreactiated! Tell me what you liked/disliked/what I can change/Anything to make this better..

Thanks for sticking with me!

Cookies for all!


	11. All Because Of A Dream: Pt 2

**Author's Note:** Here's the second part! I've decided that since I already have it typed up that I won't torture you with the wait! :D That would be awful of me! I just want to thank every one of you for reading, reviewing, alerting and favoriting! I'm so pleased that you like it so much to do that! I appreciate it a bunch, as I'm sure you know! AND WOOT! 10 CHAPTERS! I'm soooo excited! And this never would have happened without you kind readers and reviewers! Thanks soooooo much (again XD)!

**Disclaimer:** If I owned Kingdom Hearts, I definitely would not be here writing fanfics right now!  
**Warning:** Boy Love, as I'm sure you all know by now! Don't like it, don't read it. Get it? Got it? GOOD!  
**Pairings:** AkuRoku. SoRi

**Chapter 10.**

-----

**Naminé**

"Where's Kairi today?" I asked Riku, who was sitting beside me with a distant look on his face. I patted his hand gently and he turned his attention to me.

"What did you say Nam?" He asked.

"Where's Kairi?"

"Oh, I don't actually know. I haven't seen her all day," he replied.

"What about Sora?" He shrugged in response.

"Roxas is missing too..." I said, now realizing that everyone was actually missing. Riku poked his food absently before standing up suddenly.

"Where are _you _going?" I wondered. He shrugged, a solemn look mixing in with his very distant one, and walked off. "Some boyfriend." I huffed, crossing my arms over my chest. I glanced around the cafeteria and sighed. "Guess I should go look for Kairi..."

I left the cafeteria, forgetting to throw out my trash, and began to check the bathrooms, figuring they would be the best places to start. I checked the one beside the cafeteria first before heading off to the one nearest to the music room when I didn't find her.

When I stepped into that girl's bathroom, I was greeted by whimpers and sniffles.

I walked cautiously over to the stall that contained the sniffling being and knocked on its door.

"Hello? Are you okay in there?" I asked. I was answered by another whimper before I got a, "Nami?"

"Kairi?" I questioned. The door unlocked and Kairi stepped out. Her deep blue eyes were puffy and blood shot and she looked like a wreck.

"Kai, what's wrong?" I asked wrapping her into a hug.

"Sora...he broke up with me," she sniffled. I smoothed down her hair.

"He did? Why on Destiny Islands did he do that?"

"He said he didn't love me anymore." Kairi whimpered softly. "He told me...he told me..."

"What? What did he say?"

"He said his feelings for me 'changed over' to someone else."

"Oh? Did he say who?"

"No, of course he didn't say who! But I'm going to find out who she is and when I do, I'll kick her ass for taking him away from me," she told me, looking up at me with determined eyes. I smiled as I rubbed her back soothingly.

"I'm sure you will..." I replied, but I knew it wouldn't happen. She has always wanted what's best for Sora, so if someone makes him happy then she'd be happy too. I know she won't go through with anything that involves hurting someone that makes Sora or Riku happy.

**-----**

**Roxas**

I didn't realize it was time to go to class until everyone around me started getting up and walking out. I slammed my book closed and put it in my backpack before hurrying out after everyone. I rushed to my locker quickly and got my books. Then I walked off to class, still wrapped up in my own thoughts.

The end of the school day came pretty quickly and I was grateful for it. I had decided in the library that the first thing I needed to do was to apologize to Axel and make sure he wasn't mad at me. After I apologize and make everything okay between us, I'd start to think about how I exactly feel for him. I can't believe I actually have to consider doing that. I'd hoped I'd only think of him as a friend, but after reminiscing about earlier events, it seems to me to be more then I think... Sora has really gotten to me with that talk.

I just hope, for now, everything works alright.

--

I walked to my locker to see that no one was there to greet me. I got the books that I needed quickly as I waited for Axel to show up. He was my ride home after all, so he would have to show up sometime right?

Wrong, of course. He never showed up. I waited for him for ten minutes before figuring he had probably forgotten that he was supposed to give me a ride. So I started to make my way outside. When I got halfway across the parking lot I saw a flash of red hair that made me look over at all the cars. I instantly spotted Axel leaning against his green car chatting with Zexion, Demyx and a few other people. A grin spread across my face and surprisingly, I didn't have to struggle much to keep the dream away. But of course I wasn't remotely near him, so that may be why... But that was a minor detail of course. Now it was just a matter of talking to him and keeping it at bay then too.

"Hey Ax!" I greeted him. He, along with everyone he was with, looked down at me for a spilt second before returning to their previous conversation. I blinked my eyes. Was I just snubbed? By Axel? _'Why yes Roxas, I think you were just snubbed.' _"Uh, Axel...can I talk to you a moment?" But he just kept talking and talking and talking...you get the point. He's making it harder for me to get out my apology. Demyx glanced at me before poking Axel in the shoulder. Axel swatted him away and kept talking. Finally, about 15 minutes later, he said good-bye to his friends and he, Demyx, and Zexion started to file into the car. Demyx looked at me again before getting in the passenger seat, but Zexion and Axel didn't give me a second glance. I stood there staring at them, dumbfounded and curious as to why I was being treated like this. Axel started up the car and began to pull out of his parking space. I watched him drive slowly away. I instantly knew that the only way I would get to talk to Axel would be if I forced him to listen to me and so I ran after the car. It barely got out of the parking lot when I finally caught up to it and I knocked on the window on Axel's side.

"Axel!" I yelled through the glass. He looked my away, but leaned forward to see if anyone was coming before he pulled onto the street. As the car passed me I saw Zexion staring at me with a funny expression on his face...one that almost looked like he was _amused. _I rolled my eyes and quickened my pace and before I knew it I was running next to the car. "Axel! Open the freaking window! I need to talk to you!"

He ignored me of course and started to talk to Demyx and Zexion. "Damn it Axel!" I yelled. I slammed my fist against the window (surprisingly it didn't break...), startling everyone in the car. Axel looked at me and gave me a half-hearted glare which I returned full-force. No way was he going to treat me like this and think I was just going to let it go; he was going to get an earful. "Open the window you asshole." Now, I normally don't swear, but when I am angry they just kind of slip out...I guess. Axel lowered his window and slowed down. I slowed down to a brisk-walk as I tried to catch my breath.

"What do you want?" He asked. Well that was rather rude.

"I wanted to apologize for this afternoon. I didn't mean to run away from you. Something came over me and I just bol-" Axel interrupted me with a laugh. I looked at him, frustrated that he'd interrupt my apology. I began to think that he didn't actually deserve one when he said:

"Roxas, I'm not mad." He took a guick glance at the rode before placing his peridot eyes back on me. I blinked a few times, confused. A long line of cars was backing up behind us, some were beeping at us, but Axel ignored them as he kept his car moving at a snail's pace.

"But you looked so mad back there...and you were ignoring me...what was that about?" I asked.

"I was just acting. I wasn't actually mad at you...I wanted to see how you'd react. Haven't you realized by now that I enjoy doing that?" He flashed me a grin before chuckling. I heard Demyx say from inside the car, "Axel, you're a jerk."

"...You really are an asshole."

"I know, I'm beginning to take it as a compliment... Now are you going to get in and come to my house or are you going to walk all the way there? It's a pretty long hike..." He said, grinning his stupid grin at me still. I sighed and crossed my arms as I kept up my brisk-walk. "Come on Roxy, you know you want a ride in this nice, _warm _car..." I looked at him and laughed, a smile suddenly spreading across my face. There was no way I could stay mad at him. He had some kind of power over me that made me forgive him so quickly.

"Pull over and let me in." I said at last.

"Yes sir!" Axel saluted me and at once pulled over, letting all the other cars pass by as I ran to the other side and got in. As soon as I was buckled we were back on the rode driving to Zexion's house this time. It was a shorter ride to his house then it was to Demyx's so we got there in a matter of minutes. After we dropped those two off, Axel and I headed to his house.

--

When we got there we took the long trek through his enormous house to his room. As we did, I remembered that Sora had said Axel looked worried when he had talked to him. He didn't look worried now though...

"Hey, Axel. Were you worried this morning?" I asked. He looked at me with a puzzled expression.

"Worried? Why would I be?" He wondered.

"I don't know...Sora just said you looked worried when you spoke with him today..." I told him. He looked forward and knitted his eyebrows together in thought.

"...Why would I be worried? Oh probably 'cause you didn't come to your locker this morning and I thought you might have been avoiding me because you were still mad at me or something," he figured. I nodded.

"I told you I wasn't mad at you. And I wasn't avoiding you...Our paths just didn't cross this morning." I lied. Hey! It was better then getting interrogated by him about the truth.

"Yeah, but I wanted to make sure...It's much easier to tell when a person is lying or telling the truth when you're face to face with them then over a text message, ya'know?" He said.

"Yeah, you're right." I nodded. "But no need to worry. As you can see I am not mad at you...well anymore anyways." I grinned.

"Right." We were silent until we got to his room. There, I sat on his bed and he sat on his computer chair. He turned his music on before turning back to me.

"So what song are we...er...dancing to?" I asked once his attention was on me. He grinned.

"Oh you'll love it! It's one you can't help but dance to! Even _you'll_ be 'busting a move', Rox." His smirk turned into a grin as he turned back to his computer. As I thought about where the hell "busting a move" came from, Axel double clicked his mouse and a catchy song began pulsing through the speakers. Axel turned up the volume before jumping up from his seat. He grasped my arm and pulled me up from the bed. I stumbled to catch my balance as he pulled me close.

"Ready Roxy?"

"Uh...no." He laughed in my ear, sending a shiver through my body, and again, just as the day before, he guided my hips with his hands as he rocked his in time. My face heated up already; I kept my eyes averted, looking down instead of in his eyes.

"Well that's okay, this is just a warm up," he informed me. Although something in my subconscious noticed that despite our closeness something had forced my dream to the back of my mind, I had other things to worry about. Like the fact that he was unnaturally close to me. Despite that, I was happy for the distraction. It made it a lot easier to be around him. As we dance I began to wonder what exactly shoved my dream back. The only answer I could come up with, though, was that my little chat with Sora was having an effect on me_. _

_'It must have,' _I thought. _'Because before it, I blushing at even the thought of Axel and my dream haunted me constantly, whereas now, I am only blushing because Axel is so close and his hands are resting on my hips.'_ If Sora really did have something to do with this whole thing, I'd definitely have to thank him.

I was finally brought out of my thoughts when I heard the song end and Axel was pulling away from me.

"So you like it?" He asked. I nodded my head.

"It's catchy." I told him even though I really hadn't been listening. He smiled, pleased that I liked it. "Now, let's really start to practice! We don't have much time before the tryouts." Axel said. I nodded again, feeling a little apprehensive about the whole thing. "Okay, now we'll go through the routine I've thought up a few times slowly. And once you've got it, then we'll try it at the pace of the song. Sound good?"

"Whatever you say Sensei." I grinned. He chuckled and restarted the song again. He stood away from me and with the beat of the song he showed me all these dance steps. All were apart of the routine and all were equally confusing. But I tried my best despite the fact that I was born with two left feet.

I knew Axel was trying his best not to laugh as I stumbled around his room, but I could tell he was having a difficult time with it. I'd probably be laughing too if I wasn't so frustrated with the steps Axel made look oh-so easy. Finally, much to my relief, after falling on my face three times and stepping on Axel's feet multiple times, Axel called it quits for today. I immediately collapsed onto his bed, out of breath and hot. Axel tossed a water bottle on my chest and I sat up, greedily sucking down the water before he could even open his. When I lowered to water bottle down I saw him looking at me with an amused expression on his face. I blushed. He shook his head and handed his unopened bottle to me. I took it and sucked that one down too.

"This is why I don't dance. I am horrid at it for one, but I am also going to cause a drought with all the water I drink afterwards." I told him with a serious tone. Axel laughed wholeheartedly at this. I grinned as a shiver ran down my spin.

When he settled down, Axel said, "Ah, Rox, you'll get better at it. Just gotta practice more." I nodded before getting up.

"Well I should probably head home. It's getting late." Axel jumped up after me.

"You don't want to stay for dinner?" He asked. I shook my head.

"I really can't. My mom will get worried."

"I see she's where you get it from?" I nodded.

"You got it." I replied. He gave a small sigh then offered, "Let me drive you home."

"I'll let you do that this time." I answered without hesitation or any protesting. He grinned at me and led the way out of his room and house to his car. We got into the car and Axel started it up, the heat unexpectedly blasting my face as it blew out of the vents.

--

We had a relatively silent ride back to my house. That is, until I mentioned the Talent Show.

"Do you think we'll make it in?" I asked him, staring out the window.

"Into the Talent Show, you mean?" I nodded. "Of course! Once we get everything down pat, we're sure to get a spot in the show. Our routine is awesome! They'd be stupid to reject us." I snorted causing him to look at me. "What? You don't have faith in us?"

"No, I don't have faith in _me_. Plenty in you though 'cause you're a great dancer. I'm afraid I'll screw up on something and ruin our chances." He laughed this time.

"Thanks Roxy. And stop saying that. You'll be awesome too with more practice. Today was only the first serious day. I know you'll improve by Friday!"

"Oh the pressure!" I said dramatically. He grinned at me before we both became silent for the rest of the ride home.

--

"Here we are!" Axel announced as we pulled up to my house.

"Here we are..." I repeated. My voice sounded disappointed in my ears. Axel looked at me and I wondered if he had caught my tone.

"Aw, Rox! Don't be sad! You'll see me tomorrow!" A smirk grew on his face and I rolled my eyes. I should have known he'd say something like that.

"Oh shut up Axel." I laughed and punched his arm before opening the car door. Axel's fist returned the gesture, a lot harder then my punch. 'Ow,' I mouthed. He stuck his tongue out at me.

"That's what you get when you mess with The Axel." I raised an eyebrow.

"The Axel?" He nodded. "Okay then..." I shook my head. "Well I'll be seeing you!"

"Right-o! See you tomorrow Roxy! Want a ride to school?" He asked.

"Sure, thanks!"

"No problem," he smiled. A silence fell upon us and Axel cleared his throat. "Well Rox, I'm getting very hungry and I won't be able to eat if you don't get out." I looked at him and blinked.

"Oh! Right! Sorry Axel. I kind of spaced out." I grinned. He returned the grin and I finally got out. I closed the door and stepped onto the sidewalk. He waved to me and at last drove off down the street. As I waved him off, smiling, I felt a familiar feeling in my stomach and I immediately knew what it was. Butterflies. They had been gone for a while and I had completely forgot about them. Until now of course. I wondered what could possibly have brought them back, but it didn't take me long to come to a conclusion. I'm fairly certain that Axel has once again brought them back, but because of a different reason then what it had been in the beginning. I'm almost certain it's because my feelings and thoughts about that redhead are gradually changing. And without my permission.

---

**Author's Note:** There you go! Sorry if the end doesn't make much sense, I was having trouble rounding it off! But I hope you enjoyed it! Please be wonderful again and review! Encouragement and constuctive criticism are welcomed here! Thanks to all of you again for reviewing the last chapter! I'll try not to make you wait a long time for the next chapter, but I still have to write it...soo Wish me luck!

Again, thank you (x342422)! You've all been amazing!


	12. The Thoughts of a Few Others: Filler

**Author's Note:** Here's the 11th Chapter! WHOO-HOO. Kinda a filler chapter though. A few have been wondering what is going on with a few of the other characters in the story, sorta wondering what the others are thinking; so I decided to write this. This chapter is in the P.O.V's of **Sora**, **Axel**, and **Namine**. **Namine** is just sorta random, but she does have a bigger part in the story later on so I decided to give her a few sentences. I was going to do Kairi too, but I thought it was too early for her. **Sora** has the biggest part in this though, since I can write him the best and a few readers missed him. SO yeah, here ya go!

Oh and please do not kill me when you read **Axel's** POV. I know it sucks. His POV was the hardest for me and I tried my best to portray him okayish. Axel is the reason this story is getting updated when it is! He was being difficult. So again, don't kill me. I tried. I'm better at Sora and Roxas, in my opinion.

I'm also going to stop promising that the waits for each chapter are going to be shorter, 'cause that's obviously not happening! xD Sorry about that. I'll get them out whenever I can!

Still I hope you enjoy! :D

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing! Nada. I swear.  
**Pairings: **AkuRoku. Namiku. SoRi later.

* * *

**Chapter 11.**

**Sora.**

Even with the full intention of practicing my act for the Talent Show, it didn't happen as planned. First of all, it took me more then half of lunch time to _pick _a song to sing. I had to put in a lot of thought! I never knew it was that hard! Even with the music teacher, Miss Gainsborough, there with me providing some assistance it still took forever. It didn't help that with every song she suggested I refused, but I couldn't help being picky. I wanted it to be perfect!

I kept apologizing to her though, but she said she didn't mind. She understood completely and brought up a list of a ton of songs on her laptop. We went through so many, so many I didn't think suitable for the use I needed it for that I soon became discouraged and almost quit altogether. But Miss Gainsborough wouldn't let me. She actually got _upset _with me. She wasn't pleased that I just wanted to up and give up on my goal. She ended up talking me into keeping at it and to just think positively. Miss Gainsborough was sure we'd find a song. And we eventually did. I guess thinking positivity did work and when I said that, she gave me a look that clearly said 'I told you so'.

Miss Gainsborough wanted me to get to work on practicing right away and even offered to help me. I was grateful for the offer, but I had to excuse myself because I _really _had to go to the bathroom. I hadn't gone for a while and I drank too much water during the period of searching for a song that I just had to go right away.

So I slipped out of the room and headed down the hall towards to boys' bathroom. On my way there, I ended up bumping into Roxas, almost knocking him down.

I smiled at my cousin, though surprised to see him down this way, and greeted him cheerfully before I noticed he looked rather flustered...and sort of in pain. I glanced up at his forehead and spotted a bump protruding from his head. I wasn't really sure where he got it, and I didn't really want to know. So instead I tried to ignore it and asked him the general "what's wrong?" question. Of course, I got a very vague answer from him.

I didn't really know what to do at the time because I really felt it was my duty to help my cousin out when he was upset, but I also really needed to go to the bathroom because if I didn't soon I was sure I would explode. Rather quickly though, I figured something out. I told Roxas that if he cared to walk with me to the bathroom, I would listen to his problem.

Surprisingly, he agreed to this and we began walking. At first Rox was really quiet and then finally, it came out.

"I ran away...from Axel a few minutes ago," he had finally spit out before he became silent again. I figured that there was more to it then that because anyone with a brain would assume there is always a reason behind someone running away from a friend. I assumed that Axel was about to do something inappropriate to my cousin, but it turned out that wasn't the case. It was all because of an "embarrassing" dream. I asked him what it was about but he didn't say much. I guessed it was about Axel and I was right on the dot. It was kind of obvious anyway. Wanting to know more, I began to guess what exactly happened in the dream and I was right again. He and Axel had kissed. When he confirmed this information, I have to admit I was a little surprised. I never pegged Roxas as one to like guys, but I guess the same could be said about me.

Even so, I accepted the possibility without any trouble. I grinned at him and told him his dream wasn't _that_ bad. I mean, his idea of bad is breaking-a-glass bad, whereas mine is far, far worse. Seriously, I've had some pretty risqué dreams involving me, Riku, and..._other _various items. I'm not going to go into details, so you'll just have to trust me. My dreams are worse than his! And Roxas soon realized this by the look I gave him.

Anyway, I told him my thoughts on the matter as we neared the bathroom. I advised him to just listen closely to his heart and all the stuff I go by. Though he was doubtful at first, he eventually started to come around. I could see him thinking about what I said.

We finally arrived at the bathroom and as I went to relieve myself, Roxas stayed quiet and hung around at the sinks. Unable to take the silence I called out to him, asking what _he _thought about Axel.

He wasn't sure. Roxas didn't want to ruin the friendship he had with Axel with feelings Axel may never return. It's a lot like me and Riku...Except still different. Roxas didn't have to work around a girlfriend or a boyfriend, unlike myself, who has to take into account Naminé and the fact that I don't really want to hurt her in the process.

Still, I stuck by what I told him. Just to follow his heart. He was still apprehensive though.

And that's when he caught me off-guard by saying, "What if my heart is wrong?"

I wasn't sure what to say to that. I'd been doing so well, giving my cousin advice that seemed to suffice. But then he had to ask that, and to be honest, I never even thought about it...about our hearts, _my _heart, being wrong about the way we feel. It didn't strike me as possible, especially since I've followed what my heart said on many occasions and everything seemed to work out alright in the end.

For a few minutes I actually _hated_ my cousin for asking that. Not only could I not give him an answer he would consider, but it made my trust in my heart falter as well. Questions whizzed through my head, asking frantically if I was even going about this whole thing with Riku the right _and_ the best way.

My heart has influenced my mind into making me think I'm in love with my best friend, but what if it is completely wrong? What if it's wrong about the way I feel and evidently end up ruining my most precious relationship? My eyebrows furrowed in distress and I saw Roxas give me a look. I blinked and tried my best to push away the negative thoughts that had begun to settle in my mind.

With a somewhat positive attitude I replied to him, "You win some, you lose some. If things don't work out with Axel, then you'll find someone new."

I knew this answer didn't fly with him the second it left my mouth because of the look Roxas threw me. But he said thank you anyway and, despite the sarcastic intone in his voice, I accepted it with a "you're welcome" in the cheeriest voice I could muster up.

Once I washed my hands we finally left the bathroom and walked back to the room in silence. Roxas left me outside of the room and walked off down the hall. I opened the door and walked into the music room to see Miss Gainsborough rummaging around in one of her many closets.

"So you finally came back," she acknowledged my return as she pulled out a guitar. I could hear the smile in her voice, but I still could help but feel a little embarrassed about my long absence.

"Sorry about that." I apologized, my hands flying to my head to act like a headrest as I began rocking back and forth on my heels. A strange habit I picked up from when I was younger. "My cousin needed to talk to me about something. It couldn't wait."

"It's fine Sora. What matters is that you made it back. And in one piece," she smiled and glanced up at the clock. "We still have some time left. Do you want to start practicing?" My hands and arms fell from my head and landed by my sides and I stopped rocking.

"Uh...Well..." I bit my cheek as thoughts of what Roxas had said came back.

Miss Gainsborough, hearing the hesitation in my voice, looked at me as she tuned her guitar with concerned eyes.

"Do you not want to do this anymore?" She asked.

"No it's not that...I still want to do it. I think..." I sat down at a desk. "I don't know!" I slammed my head against the hard wooden surface.

I heard Miss Gainsborough get up from her perch on the heater and make her way closer to me.

"Sora," she said gently, placing a hand on my shoulder, making me look up. "What's wrong? You were so excited earlier. What happened to all that positive energy?" I shrugged.

"Sora." Miss Gainsborough repeated with a slightly firm tone. I sighed.

"My cousin asked me something that made me start wondering if my heart is right about what I am feeling." I told her.

"What did your cousin say exactly?"

"Well, I was telling him to follow his heart on something, since it knows what to do, and then he asked 'What if my heart is wrong?' I completely shut down when he said that. I don't think I've ever thought about my heart being wrong...But now I am and if it _is _wrong then I'm doing all this, this careful planning, only to be let down in the end." Miss Gainsborough shook her head.

"Sora, if you've never doubted your heart before, there is no reason to start now; especially just because someone asks you a question about something you don't necessarily believe possible. Your cousin doubts himself. Maybe putting so much trust in his heart isn't right for him. But for you, I think it suits you just fine. You seem to be getting along nicely by following your heart. I think that way is the best way for you to go." Miss Gainsborough told me.

"I guess..."

"Well I _know_. Sora, don't make someone else's uncertainty become your own. Do what you've been doing and everything will work out fine." She smiled at me, giving me the reassurance I needed.

"Okay. Thanks Miss Gainsborough." I replied gratefully. She nodded before glancing up at the clock again. Sighing, she looked back at me.

"We've run out of time today. But feel free to come by anytime. I'd love to help you practice," she said. I nodded before gathering my belongings and heading for the door. Before leaving, I turned to her and thanked her again.

With high spirits now, I went through the rest of the day with a smile plastered on my face and a light heart. I was utterly grateful to Miss Gainsborough. If it wasn't for her I would be in the worst mood ever.

Unfortunately when it got around the time school got out, my good mood started to get crushed under the weight of the fact that I'd have to walk home in an awkward silence with my two best friends and maybe the girlfriend of one. Great way to end an already pretty bad day.

I sighed as I made my way to my locker feeling a headache, probably from all the stress, start up in my head. Just thinking about how awful this walk home was probably going to be stresses me out. First time in a long time I've not looked forward to the journey home. I started to wonder who I was actually going to be walking home with and if there was a reason to worry at all when I looked up in the direction of my locker to see both Riku and Kairi standing there, chatting it up with each other.

I blinked as I continued on my way, thinking it was rather weird for Kairi to be standing there only a few hours after I broke up with her. It wasn't making any sense in my brain, but I didn't think about that for a long time because I noticed that Naminé wasn't standing with them. My spirits rose at the possibility that maybe, just _maybe_, Riku had broken up with her. My hoping was in vain because just as I walked up to them, Naminé popped up beside Riku, linking her arm with his. The smile that had appeared on my face was short-lived as I mumbled a hello to the three standing at my locker.

They replied with their own versions of the greeting and stepped aside so I could get to my books.

It took me no time at all to get together my books and when I was done, I announced it with a harsh slam of my locker door. I turned around to see Naminé wince at the loud noise.

I gave the three a forced smile as I said, "Okay, we can go as soon as Roxas gets here."

"I think he's getting a ride home with that redheaded kid." Naminé spoke up.

"Axel?" I asked.

"Sure, if that's his name... I'm not exactly sure. But he was mumbling something about Roxas when he passed by me so I just assumed it might be about a ride, since they have been spending a lot of time together..." I nodded. Apparently they made up. Good.

"Okay, we can go then." I told them and we began our way outside.

The way home was a very silent walk. Naminé and Riku were holding hands and standing very close while Kairi and I carried on, a large gap separating us. A silence lingered among us; at first it was very awkward, almost unbearably so, but then slowly, it eased up a bit and we could just walk as if everything was right in the world, even though it wasn't.

Still, I was grateful my house was the first stop on the street. I waved to my friends and walked up to my house. It was rather weird going home alone since I was used to hanging out with Kairi and Riku everyday after school for hours and hours. It didn't feel right. There was a break in my usual routine and it bothered me.

It also bothered me that I had so much time on my hands. I had enough time to do all my homework before bed, unlike the times when my friends came over and I didn't finish my homework until the next day. Also, after my homework, I was so unbelievably bored. I found nothing that occupied my time any longer than an hour.

It was awful. I ended up actually falling asleep hours before my actual bedtime.

I did not like the way things were. I wanted them to change back to the way they were before everything started to screw them up. I definitely can not take another day as excruciating as this one!

**Axel.**

Finally life is starting to get interesting. Not that it wasn't before; having Demyx and Zexion as best friends makes it difficult to be bored with life. Seriously, sometimes we get into things -thanks to Demyx- that are so dangerous, I'm surprised I haven't been maimed or worse, killed; it's not even funny. Well actually, it kind of is, in an ironic way, since I've always been told that _I'd _end up being the one maiming or killing my friends...

I always knew I was more responsible than that...

But I digress. What I meant before was that it's become..._more _interesting. Thanks to my new friend, Roxas.

Yes, Roxas has managed to make life even more interesting than it already was. I never thought it possible, but apparently it is.

Roxas is a curious one after all. I've only just met him and yet I feel a strange pull towards him...I feel there is a connection between us I've felt with no other.

It's difficult to explain this connection that I am feeling, so I won't go and try because I know I will sound like a bumbling idiot. I just sounded like an idiot saying 'bumbling'...That's such a Zexion word.

Gah, off-track again.

Anyway, Roxy is a fun kid to work with. Both at our jobs at _A_ _World_ _of_ _Tales_ and when we're practicing our routine for the Talent Show; which, by the way, is slowly advancing from awful to mediocre. Roxas _is_ getting better, I will give him that much, but he could be amazing.

Half of his problem is the fact that he isn't comfortable dancing. If he's not comfortable performing the routine when it's just the two of us, then I don't know how I'm going to get him to be comfortable enough to perform in front of a huge audience...

That's going to be an issue...

Maybe I could ask Zexion and Demyx to be an audience sometime before tryouts...Yeah, that could work. Then I could slowly get the "audience" to become larger. Sure it won't be as huge as the one on the day of the Talent Show, but it'll get him used to being in front of a larger crowd than he's used to...

Great plan there Axel!

Another issue with him is his confidence level. It could be higher. But I'm sure he'll be better with that when he knows the routine like the back of his hand.

I know, though, that he's trying his hardest. He's determined; I can see it in his face. Whenever he fails at relaying a step back to me after I've shown him, his eyes harden and he concentrates his whole mind on perfecting the step. I know that on determination alone is what is keeping him from giving up on this act all together. If it wasn't for that, I would have lost him by now, I'm sure of it.

Let's just hope his determination holds out for us to perfect the dance together and land us a spot in the show!

**Naminé.**

I'm worried about Kairi. It's barely been a day and she's already making herself crazy trying to figure out who it is that Sora left her for. I guess she's more determined than I thought.

I just hope that she doesn't do anything drastic.

That would be bad for her...and the rest of us.

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:cowers in fear of its horrible-ness: What did you all think? Axel's POV sucked, no? I'm so very sorry. He's really hard for me to get right, as I stated already. I don't know why. It was also kinda random too. :sighs: Oh wells. I tried. Gotta give me credit for that xD Thanks for reading though! I'd appreciate a few reviews filled with wonderful comments/ criticism/and or encouragement.

And thanks to all who reviewed the last chapters and such. I really appreciate them! You have no idea! :gives each and every one of you nummy cookies:

**[Also, Happy Easter to those who celebrate it! :D]**


	13. Confession of a Redhead

**Author's Note: **Finally another chapter. I can't believe the last time I updated it was April. xD Anyway, I had a really hard time getting back into this story, but I finally was able to write down something for it and here it is. I have mixed feelings about this chapter but even still, I hope it lives up to any expectations you have...if you actually have some. Enjoy please :D

**Disclaimer:** I still don't own it.  
**Warnings:** Boy love. You know the deal. Cheesy confessions.  
**Pairings:** AkuRoku. Namiku. SoRi later on.

* * *

  
**Chapter 12.**

The next few days got rather busy for me. They mostly consisted of going to school for the day and then spending the rest of the day at Axel's house, practicing our Talent Show dance; which is gradually becoming more fun for me and something I looked forward to.

I do enjoy being in the redhead's company. It was slowly becoming less awkward around him despite the constant fluttering of butterflies in my stomach. I was beginning to be able to ignore them…sort of. Now, I had to deal with the random blushing that would occur with certain things Axel would say or do. But even with those two things always hovering over me, I still managed to have fun with him and not allow my raging 15 year old hormones ruin that completely.

But as days with Axel slowly grew less awkward, they grew increasingly awkward with Sora and his tag-a-longs. Especially at lunch. Our numbers have gradually decreased from five to two (occasionally three) in a matter of days. Sora spent most of his time (when he wasn't in class) practicing for the Talent Show. And only the gods know where the hell Kairi vanishes off to, sometimes taking Naminé along with her, leaving me alone with her oh so pleasant boyfriend.

Who I was currently stuck staring at while I tried to enjoy my lunch. He was more or less glaring back at me over his water bottle.

Eventually, though, he heaved a sharp sigh and his glare softened as he turned his gaze down to the sandwich he'd barely touched. A smirk began to grow on my face as I realized I just technically "won" a "fight" against him. Since this was rare for me, I was going to take this chance to brag, but before I could Riku spoke first.

"Shut it Roxas," he ordered, still looking down at his sandwich. My mouth hung open until I remembered to close it. My gaze hardened and I stood up abruptly. I walked away from the table as fast as I could before I caused a scene. As I walked away, I realized _I'd_ just let _him_ win.

_'Damn it!' _I thought frustrated with myself and him. The score was now 1 to 1 million. Lovely.

I sighed and shook my head slightly. I decided to forget about it and not let Riku bother me any longer. It wasn't worth getting angry over, after all.

So, I decided to spend the rest of my lunch time, since I definitely wasn't going back to the cafeteria, aimlessly wandering the halls. I might find new places to hide out in…

Instead I got two juniors, standing on ladders, trying to hang a banner. I blinked up them and watched them for a few minutes as they struggled to get it into place.

"Uh, hey you guys." I greeted them, finally, when I got bored of watching them struggle. Demyx looked down at the sound of my voice and grinned at me. Immediately, the older blond dropped his side of the banner and climbed down the ladder, completely ignoring Zexion's annoyed orders for him to get back onto his ladder before he mutilates him.

Demyx jumped off the last rung, not bothered by Zexion's threats at all, and walked over to me.

"Hey Rox! Funny seeing you here. Isn't it your lunch period?" Demyx asked. I nodded, "Yeah, but I couldn't take being alone with Riku so I left."

"Oh," he chuckled. "I see." I looked passed him to see Zexion sending him death glares. Demyx turned too, probably realizing I was no longer paying him any attention, and waved at Zexion.

"Demyx, I swear if you don't get back up here and help me with this banner you will _not _enjoy the consequences." Zexion told him through his clenched teeth as he tried to support the weight of the canvas banner with his arm. Demyx snickered and waved away his threat.

"Hold your horses, Zexy. I'm comin'; I'm comin'." The tall blond left my side and climbed back up to his post, but taking his time doing so. I shook my head at the limits Demyx pushed. Even when Zexion looked like he wanted to kill him, Demyx still did things at a leisurely pace despite this.

Reaching the top, Demyx held out his hands and Zexion tossed the other end of the banner to him, which, surprisingly enough, Demyx caught with ease and raised it up.

Demyx looked over his arm and asked, "How does it look from down there, Rox?" I leaned back and took a good look at it; turns out it was a brightly colored advertisement for the upcoming Talent Show.

"Zex, pull it over to your side a little bit and it'll be perfect." I instructed. He did what I told him to do and they tacked it up.

Once they were finished, both upperclassmen joined me at the bottom to admire their work.

"It looks great! Thanks for the help!" Demyx exclaimed.

"I didn't do anything though…" I replied.

"Yes you did. Just accept the thanks and don't question it, Roxas." Demyx told me with a grin. I shrugged.

"Now, to put up the posters." Zexion announced picking up a stack of papers on the floor. Zexion looked up from the papers at me and saw me eyeing them.

He flipped one over for me to see. They were also very brightly decorated. "These, too, are for the Talent Show."

"Gotcha."

"I got recruited by Rikku and Selphie to help put them up." Zexion explained, obvious displeasure in his voice.

"Zexy unwillingly agreed to it, of course." Demyx added, picking up another stack of posters.

"Naturally." A small smile appeared on Zexion's face. I smirked.

"They really have you working your ass off, huh?" I commented. "First, helping with the technological stuff for the actual show, and now they have you putting up posters! Oh poor Zexion!" I was mocking him and he knew it. Both Demyx and Zexion laughed.

"Stop being a smart ass, Roxas, and help us out. Or else," he said shaking the posters in my face. I raised an eyebrow.

"Else what?" I wondered. Demyx prodded me with his elbow, since his hands were unavailable. I looked up at him curiously.

"Roxas, you really don't want to know…That threat back when we were putting up the banner, he was just joking around –if you can believe that- but this time he's completely serious. His smile is very deceiving, I know, but after knowing him for a while I've learned that his smile, especially in a situation like this, is _not _a good thing. You'll learn the difference eventually." I looked at the fearful blond with disbelief probably written all over my face until I glanced at Zexion to see him nod slightly.

I laughed nervously, understanding that Demyx was completely serious, and cautiously took half of Zexion's pile before taking a large step away from the slate-haired junior.

Then, keeping my distance from Zexion, all three of us began walking down the hall, putting up posters wherever we saw fit.

While Zexion and I posted posters up silently, Demyx traveled down the hall, singing "A Whole New World" from _Aladdin _very loudly, his voice cracking whenever he sang Jasmine's parts.

I laughed, amused by this, before asking Zexion (who was now on the opposite side of the hall), "Who made the posters?"

"Naminé. She's a really great artist, no?" Zexion commented.

"Yeah." I agreed, confirming it with a nod. Then bringing the conversation completely off-topic, I asked, "Where's Axel?"

I looked back at Zexion to see a smirk on his face.

"Why do you care?" He asked.  
"Well…uh…I-I don't really…Just figured he'd want to be a part of this since it means getting out of class." I replied quickly, thinking up a very possible reason as fast as I could. He gave me a look that told me he knew I'd made it up on the spot, but didn't verbally say anything about it. He just shook his head before answering, "Well he is helping out, just he's somewhere else putting up posters."

I nodded. Zexion turned back to the wall and taped up another poster as I walked a little ways down the hall.

I noticed the silence lingering around the hall as I taped up one of my own posters and began to feel slightly awkward. I didn't know Zexion as well as I knew Axel and Demyx, so I was still unsure of how to act around him when it was just us. Usually Demyx or Axel would be around to strike up conversations, but right now it was just the two of us.

I looked over my shoulder at him and studied him as he held the roll of tape in his mouth while he used one hand to hold up a poster and the other to tape it up.

He seemed to me like a pretty trustworthy guy, despite actually knowing so little about him. Someone anyone, who was friends with him that is, could talk to without being judged before whatever was wrong left their mouth.

Figuring this was the type of guy Zexion was, I soon became lost in my thoughts, all of which revolved around asking Zexion his opinion of the situation I was in involving Axel. I was debating on whether I should go to him or not when his voice broke through my contemplating.

"Roxas, is something the matter?" He asked. I blinked at him as I took in what he asked. I repeated the question in my head and I looked up at him. He was looking at me, a curious expression on his face.

_'Should I ask or should I just keep it from him and figure it out myself?'_

"Roxas?"

_'Hurry up and make up your mind! He's not going to stand there all day waiting for you to answer him!' _I internally yelled at myself to make a decision. I was gazing around the room as I hurriedly tried to make a choice when finally my eyes landed back on him. Suddenly, without even realizing it, I asked, "Zexion, could you help me with something? It's relating to Axel and I'd like your take on it."

Zexion turned so he was fully facing me and leaned casually against the wall, a small smile now etched on his lips. "Certainly Roxas. Shoot."

**Demyx.**

I'd long since left Roxy and Zexy in my dust, figuratively speaking, and was making my way down another hall, putting up posters wherever I saw fit, when I met up with Axel, who was walking leisurely out of the bathroom nearby.

We stared at each other before I demanded, "Axel, what are you doing?"

"Er…walking out of the bathroom…?"

"Is that what you're _supposed _to be doing?"

"Uh…" He raised an eyebrow at me. Classic Axel. I sighed and put my fists on my hips.

"Axel, you're supposed to be helping put up posters! You promised you wouldn't slack off!" I scolded him. He always does this.

His eyes widened and said, "Demyx! I was _going to the bathroom_! I wasn't slacking!"

I crossed my arms.

"And anyways, I've already finished my stack. In my eyes, you're the one who's slacking." He nodded to the pile of papers in my hand with a smirk. I quickly hid the papers behind my back. Axel laughed at me and punched my arm. "Always so quick with the assumptions, Dem. Here I'll help you finish up."

He held out his hand and I sighed. I then placed half of the papers in his grasp and we began walking.

"Where's Zexion?" Axel suddenly asked as we both were putting up a poster.

"Somewhere back there," I pointed the way I came. "With Roxas."

My redheaded from turned and looked at me. "He's with Roxas?"

"That's what I said, did I not?" I replied. "Hey could you hand me the tape?"

He handed me the role of tape and asked, "Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why is he here? Roxas I mean. Is he helping us?" He questioned.

"Yes. Since he's a good friend he offered…or well he 'offered' after a little persuasion from Zexy." I informed him.

"Wait, isn't it his lunch time now?" I nodded. "You're making him miss lunch to help us with these posters?" I rolled my eyes. And they say _I'm _the dense one.

"Last time I checked, Axel, lunch was held in the cafeteria not the halls where he found us. And as I already told you, he offered to help!" I tried to get it through to him.

He was silent until he replied with, "Oh, I see."

"Yeah, and you say I'm quick to make an assumption…" I rolled my eyes again and put up another poster a little ways down the hall.

"Learned it from you," he shot back calmly as he followed me down the hall. I walked further down the hall looking for a free space on the walls around me for posters. I stopped a few feet down and looked over my shoulder at Axel, who had paused in front of a bulletin board and was now scanning the notices tacked on it.

I watched him as he looked over the board before breaking the silence a few seconds later by saying, "Hey Axe? Can I ask you a question?"

My red-haired friend turned to me as he replied nonchalantly, "You just did." I gave him a deadpanned look until he smiled and leaned back on the wall behind him. He closed his eyes and for a bit of time we stood there in the hall in silence as we were until he cracked open a lid, revealing an emerald orb.

"Well?" He said. His voice was so sudden and crystal clear in the silence it made me jump.

"Oh! Oh right! My question!" I exclaimed after realizing he was prompting me to continue.

He shook his head and once again closed the eye he'd opened.

"Well Axe, I was wondering…do you like Roxas?" I mentally smacked myself. I'd meant for the question to come out differently and a little less…blunt, but it obviously didn't happen that way. Axel sighed, opening his eyes and looking straight at me.

"Of course I do, stupid. I mean we are friends after all…or did you miss that part?" He replied. I sighed secretly wanting to smack him upside the head for being such a smartass.

"Axel, I know you know what I meant. But still, I'll rephrase it: Do you _like-like _Roxas?" Still could have done a better job getting that out, but there was nothing I could do now.

Axel chuckled and said, "Next time you should say what you _actually _mean."

I rolled my eyes and walked up to him. "Whatever Axel. Just answer the question."

He pushed himself off the wall and stretched. "Which one?"

"Axel!" I exclaimed, annoyed. He looked at me, saw how peeved I was with him and sighed.

"Fine, fine. Just calm down." He told me. I crossed my arms and waited patiently for his answer. He was silent for a minute or two, staring at the floor before returning his gaze to my face. "You want the truth right?"

"That would be nice." I replied becoming tired of his antics. Will he just tell me already?!

"If I said yes, would you be upset with me?" He asked. I raised an eyebrow.

"Why would I be upset with you?"

"Just answer my question." Axel ordered firmly.

"Of course I wouldn't be upset with you, stupid." I told him. I pretty much had my answer then, but I wanted to hear _him_ admit it. He leaned his head back on his make-shift headrest he'd made with his arms and looked up at the ceiling.

"Then yes. I do 'like-like' Roxas. Not exactly sure when I realized it, but the feelings are definitely there." He admitted. I immediately felt a huge grin grow on my face and he raised an eyebrow up at me. "What are you so happy for?"

"I'm happy for _you, _Axie!" I flung my arms around him in a hug and squeezed him tightly. I felt my red-haired friend try to break free from my grasp, but I refused to let him go.

"Why?" He asked. I pulled away from him.

"Why _wouldn't _I be? My best friend just finally admitted out loud the feelings he has for a certain blond, the same exact feelings Zexy and I have assumed were floating about a few days after he came into said best friend's life!" I grinned. "This is a very exciting thing!"

Axel stared at me. "Demyx, you sound like a girl."

I ignored his comment. "You know what this means right?"

"No…What does it mean?"

"It means you can finally move this relationship you have with Roxas _forward_!" I replied excitedly. Axel widened his eyes at me before raising a hand up.

"Whoa, whoa. Hold on there, Kiddo. Who said anything about wanting to move forward with Roxas?"

I blinked at him, confused. "Well don't you?"

"…Yeah I do, but…"

I interrupted him. "But nothing! You have to make a move while he's still here! Don't let him slip through your fingers!"

"But…"

"Axel," I begin sternly. "Roxas is a cute kid. Anyone with decent vision can see that. He's not going to be available for long, if you don't act immediately. He's not going to wait for you forever."

He blinked at me. "Who said he's waiting for me now? Who knows if he _actually _likes me the way I like him?"

Oh, and I'm the one who sounds like a girl. Rolling my eyes, I wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

"Axel, you gotta take some chances in life. You, of all people, should know that already! And who knows," I give him a knowing smile. "He just may be waiting for you. But you'll never know unless you act on your feelings."

He stared at me as I grinned at him. "Now why don't you think about it while we head back to the other two?" I glanced at a clock hanging above some lockers. "It's almost time for our next period to start and we still have to take a count of how many posters still need posting."

Axel blinked a few more times before nodding slightly and letting me lead the way back in the direction of Zexion and Roxas.

**Naminé. **

I watch as Kairi paced the bathroom, staring down in concentration at the tiled floor.

"Kairi," I started, breaking her concentration. She stopped abruptly and looked at me. "Don't you think you're taking this whole thing a little far? It's quickly turning from simple curiosity to a downright obsession."

"No it's not! Don't I have the right to know who Sora dumped me for?" She questioned.

"To be honest with you, no. Anything Sora does is not really of any concern to you anymore. It's none of your business. You are his _ex-_girlfriend, after all." I informed her. She bit her lip.

"But I'm still one of his best friends. So it still _does _concern me." Kairi insisted.

"Okay so _yes_, as a friend, it does. If there is something about this whole situation that concerns you _as a best friend_, then it might be all right for you to pursue this. But only if your intentions are pure. But right now, I'm almost positive they aren't. You two just broke up and I know how upset that makes you and you have bitter feelings towards the whole situation. You want to get back at Sora and you want to find this girl who broke you guys up. I know you may think that's a good idea now, but if you go on, running on solely your bitter feelings, something will go wrong and you'll regret ever doing a thing in the end. You know what I'm saying?"

Kairi blinked at me before sighed and shaking her head. "Geez, Nam. You're really looking too deep into what I'm doing. I just want to know who this chick is. I'm not going to do anything more."

I studied her expression. She was smiling, trying to assure me she was telling the truth, but I saw in her eyes that she was planning something more. A tiny sigh left my mouth.

"I'm just warning you, that's all. I don't want you to lose Sora for good."

Kairi nodded and as she pulled me to her side, she said, "Thanks Nam. You're an amazing friend. I understand you are just looking out for me, but there really is nothing to worry about. I swear."

Yeah, we'll see.

* * *

**Author's Note:** There it is! Hope it wasn't a disappointing chapter. Please tell me what you think~


	14. Awkward Times Ahead From Now On

**Author's Note: **Another chapter finally finished. It's a filler (and a not-so-great one at that), but at least it's something. This chapter was not fun to write towards the end...Kinda boring, but I'll wait to here what you guys think!  
**Disclaimer: **Don't own it.

* * *

**Chapter 13.**

As Demyx and I walked back to where I assumed he'd left Zexion and Roxas, I couldn't help but think about what I'd just confessed to the tall blond beside me.

I like…possibly _love_ Roxas. How can that even be? I'd met him only a week ago…That's too soon and this whole thing is too screwed up, even for me. Stuff like this isn't supposed to happen. It only happens in movies and that's only because the directors and producers have to keep them under a set time or else it's just overkill and people begin to get bored.

It isn't supposed to happen in reality…

But yet…it did. And to me nonetheless.

Who ever imagined that something like falling in love with a kid one just met would happen to me? Certainly not me…Possibly Demyx though.

I looked over at him as he obliviously trekked on with me through the halls.

It definitely seemed like something Demyx could imagine. He's into stuff like that…way more than one guy should be, if I have anything to say about it.

I sighed out loud and saw Demyx look at me out of my peripheral vision.

"Something the matter?" He questioned. I could hear the curiosity in his voice. I gave him a shrug.

"Like I know. Like I know anything any more."

"Wow, you're being _overly_ dramatic right now." Demyx pointed out, leaning his head back on his hands.

"Jesus, give me a break there, Dem. What I said back there was totally huge. Before you forced the information out of me, I was perfectly fine. Now that it's out there, my feelings for Roxas, that is, it changes everything. Below this calm, cool, sexy exterior is a little Axel freaking out right now." That got a laugh out him, despite the fact that I was being completely serious.

"Wow, Axel. Really. There is nothing to freak out about."

"Easy for you to say." I mumbled.

He ignored me and said, "Well, I think the best thing for you to do now, to calm your nerves, is to come clean and tell Rox how you feel."

I looked over at my best friend with an incredulous expression on my face. "And how would _that _be the best thing for me?"

He shrugged, smiling. "Beats me, but it's a good idea nonetheless!"

Before I could protest and insult his intelligence, he changed the subject on me.

"Zexy and Roxas should be around here somewhere." Demyx said. "Now which hallway did I leave them in?"

We turned a corner and heard voices. They got louder as we advanced down the hall.

"Ah, that's where I left them!" My blond friend laughed as he picked up his pace. I quickened my pace to match his and just before we rounded the corner, Demyx slammed his back against the wall, bringing his arm out and slamming back beside him, knocking the wind out of me.

I never knew he was that strong!

"Jesus Christ, Demyx!" I hissed. "Why'd you-"

"Shhh Axel!"

"Are we eavesdropping on them?" I questioned, though I knew the answer.

"Yes, now shut up!" He hissed at me. I smirked.

"You devious little bastard." I chuckled before he threw me a look and I quieted down for good. We peaked around the corner to see Zexion facing us and Roxas' back to us.

"…so you see my dilemma, right?" Roxas questioned softly. Zexion put a finger to his chin and tapped it a few times before nodding.

"I do."

"What do you think I should do then?" What should you about what? What had I missed?

"Tell him." Zexion replied finally. Tell who what?! Now I was curious to find out what they were talking about while Dem and I had our own conversation.

"I don't know if that's a good idea…"

"And why not?" Zexion questioned him, his tone holding only the slightest trace of curiosity, a trace that only those close to him could pick up on. I saw Roxas shrug.

"It just wouldn't be…" He replied. "I have no clue if he feels the same way about me and I don't want to go ruining the relationship we have established by taking stupid actions." _He_? Who's this they're talking about? That pronoun definitely peaked my interest. Hell, the whole sentence has me curious to find out about who is trouble the tiny blond.

Zexion stared at him, an index finger placed on his chin.

"What if you did tell him and it turned out alright?"

"Then obviously that would be great, but it never works out like that."

"You never know, Roxas. Life and love are mysterious things. You shouldn't always have such a negative outlook on things. It doesn't help you get what you want." Zexion told him. I snorted quietly, earning a look from Demyx.

"He should take some of his own advice." I whispered to him and he smiled at me before we both turned back to the two a few feet away from us.

Roxas stayed silent for a few moments.

"If it's ruining your friendship you're worried about, you shouldn't. I honestly don't think you'd be ruining anything. Especially since I'm fairly certain he feels the same. You wouldn't be ruining your relationship, you'd be strengthening it." Zexion said.

The blond before him remained silent. His hands flew up to his face a moment later and he cried out, "Grah! Despite what you've just said, I still don't know what the right thing to do is!"

Zexion chuckled. "Well Roxas, I can't make the decision for you. I can only give you advice. And that's the best advice I can tell you. Whether or not you decide to tell him or not is your decision alone."

The blond nodded into his hands. "Damn it. Why's this have to be so difficult?"

I leaned back onto the wall. "What are they talking about?" Not knowing was unbearable. My curiosity was killing me slowly.

"Shhh Axel! Listen." Demyx hissed. I rolled my eyes. It didn't look like they were going to say anything more, so what was the point in listening anymore? Demyx grabbed at my shirt's collar and pulled me over to the corner.

"…So do you really think it's a good idea to tell Axel? What I've been feeling, I mean?" Roxas asked.

I felt my eyes widen. "…Me?"

"That was what I said, was it not?" Zexion smiled slightly.

"He most definitely was talking about you, Axe. He most definitely was talking about you." Demyx told me.

Unbelievable.

**Roxas.**

I stood facing the slate-haired male with a look of apprehension. I sighed.

"Okay. Then I guess that's the plan. Now picking a time to do it is the new dilemma."

"The time'll come," was all Zexion said before we were interrupted by the sound of footsteps.

"Hey you two!" Demyx shouted from behind and I turned around to look at him and the redhead he'd brought along.

"Hey guys." I smiled slightly, barely able to look at Axel. But I still managed since I didn't want him getting suspicious. He grinned back at me and my stomach immediately tied itself into knots.

"How's it going?" Axel asked, his gaze trained on me.

"Fine." Zexion answered for the both of us.

"Did'ya put up a lot of posters?" Demyx asked excitedly. I liked down at the pile in my hands before looking at Zexion who met my gaze. We turned back to the blond and grinned sheepishly, holding up our equally large stacks in front of us.

Demyx's face fell when he saw how many posters we still had left.

"You guuuyyyss!" He whined taking my pile from me and flipping through them.

"Looks like they were the ones who've been slacking off, Dem!" Axel teased as the tall blond took Zexion's pile from him. Axel leaned down to my level and stared me in the eyes. I felt the heat rush to my cheeks as his breath washed over my face. It sent a shiver up my spine.

The redhead smiled and asked, "Care to share the reason as to why these posters aren't up, Rox?"

I blinked at him as both my min and heart raced. My mind fumbled around, trying to think up a good excuse, but the closeness of Axel's face to mine was making it awfully hard to concentrate.

Axel continued to stare at me and just when I felt like I was going to be sick, Zexion spoke up.

"We got caught up in something and forgot. Simple as that." The slate-haired junior answered him calmly. Axel turned his attention over to Zexion, taking the pressure of answering off me. I immediately felt a wave of relief wash over me as he moved away.

Dealing with Axel now was definitely going to be harder than before with the new found pressure of telling him how I felt. Fantastic.

As I calmed down Axel said, "'Forgot'? Zexion, you never forget _anything_."

Crap.

"I looked over at Zexion nervously. He was staring at Axel, expressionless.

I could see Axel's smirk forming on his lips, figuring he'd caught us in our lie. Zexion just shrugged.

"First time for everything, Axel," he replied coolly before beginning his way down the hall. "We better head over to our next class."

Demyx looked up from counting the posters and smiled. "Oh right! Class! I completely forgot!"

He gripped the papers in his hands and bounded after the slate-haired teen.

Leaving me alone…with Axel.

Shit! Damn you Zexion! I bet you planned that! Evil little ba-

My thoughts were interrupted by the slinging of one of the redhead's lanky arms over my shoulders.

I hesitantly looked up at him as I tried my hardest to keep my cool.

Calm down, Rox. Just keep calm. Breath. Just breath. There you go. No big deal. Good bo- wait why is Axel looking at me like that.

During the time I had been telling myself to keep calm, Axel's face had taken on an expression of concern and slight amusement.

"You okay, Roxas? You look like you've seen a ghost!" Axel informed me.

"Wha--?" I responded, so confused I couldn't even form a full, coherent word.

"Don't worry Roxy," he smiled. "I'll walk you to class and protect you from all the ghosties!"

He drew me closer to him and we began walking in the direction of my locker.

And all I could think about was how much I hated Zexion for setting me up the whole way there.

**Demyx.**

"Do you think either of them will take the opportunity to tell the other how they feel?" I questioned my slate-haired friend as we leisurely walked down the hall.

"I highly doubt it," he replied knowingly.

I looked at him.

"Then why did-"

"They might surprise us. We have to give them every chance they can get. They may not take them at first, but eventually they'll figure it out." Zexion answered.

"Oh that makes sense." I nodded, only sort of understanding what he had just said.

**Axel.**

Damn those idiots I call "best friends." Setting me up like this with Roxas!

When I'm absolutely ready I'll tell him the truth. But only on my own time! As for right now, though, I gotta keep my calm and not let Roxas suspect a thing!

Shouldn't be too hard, right?

**Sora.**

"Bye Miss Gainsborough! Thank you!" I called to the music teacher before leaving the music room, a huge smile on my face. Today I was able to make it through the whole song with few screw-ups, which means is obviously great! And Miss Gainsborough even said I was improving herself and she must be telling the truth since she got through most of it without cringing! This just makes me so happy! Soon I'll be great enough to tryout for the Talent Show!

I clap at the thought of actually being good enough get a spot in the Talent Show.

Just gotta keep practicing! No giving up! Remember: it's all for Riku!

* * *

**Author's Note:** Here you go! Kinda stinky I know. The other chapters should be better, more interesting to say the least. Sorry if there are a lot of typos or what not. I only quickly went over it. I'll probably come back and fix it up later. Oh, and there are only a few chapters left of this story! Woot! Thanks to all those who have stuck with me this far! You guys are great!


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